A Man's World
by ReeseLovesCarter
Summary: Pairings: John Reese & Kat Greyson OC . Katherine Greyson works in a heavily male-populated field. She's tough as nails when she needs to be. One evening she meets John Reese, a man that makes her feel like the woman she truly is. Our story is a co-authored fic. I may have posted the fic but my partner in crime is ReeseisLAVAhot!
1. Chapter 1

A Man's World

Chapter 1

Kat grabbed her coat off the rack in her office, checked the pocket for her wallet and keys, slipped on her pumps and sighed. The rest of her night stretched in front of her, the same as every other night this week. She would go home, make herself dinner and eat it while watching some mindless drivel on TV. When it got to the point where she could no longer stand it, she'd go to bed and then repeat it all over the next night. Granted she knew there were friends she could call, they could all go out to the clubs or perhaps a movie, but what would be the point? She would still inevitably be going back to an empty apartment. Unless she chose to accept one of the invitations that would result from going out to the clubs with her friends. 'Fat chance!' She thought to herself. A one night stand would mean allowing someone to just use her body and that would leave her feeling even worse than being alone.

She locked up the trailer that served as her office while on the job site and carefully picked her way across the site. She was always extra careful, it was one of her trademarks and one of the reasons she never had any trouble finding skilled workers. She hadn't had an on site accident in five years, a fact that was almost unheard of in this business. But she saw the people who worked with her as a family and she was conscious of her responsibility and took their safety very seriously. Besides, her people knew her well enough to know that if anyone had left materials where they shouldn't, she'd find out and have their balls for breakfast.

She reached the gate around the construction site and waited for Frank, the night watchman to come around. Other companies might be able to afford the loss of a few materials here and there, but her small company, in order to remain competitive in the trade, couldn't afford to lose even a welding helmet. She double locked the chain and then connected the alarm. The alarm was more of a deterrent than anything. Anyone who tried to open the gate to get any of the big equipment out would be frightened off by the loud screeching followed by the appearance of Frank from wherever he was at the moment.

"Good evening Ms. Greyson." Frank said when he saw her waiting for him at the gate. "All locked up?"

"Hi Frank. Yes, all locked up. Have a good night and say hi to Sheri!" She asked after his wife and then began walking towards the nearest subway station. She walked down the street, her shoulders thrown back and her head held high with a confidence that belied her internal struggle with the fear of being alone. She thought about how she had inherited her company.

Her parents had been killed in a car accident when she was thirteen, leaving just her and her older brother. They had gone to live with their aunt and uncle for a year but as soon as Mike had turned of legal age, he took over her guardianship with their uncle's blessing. Her dad had had part ownership in a construction company with her uncle at the time of his death. Her uncle continued to run the business in trust for her and her brother, hoping that when he came of age, Mike would take over the company. But then, Mike had surprised everyone by joining the Army. Her uncle had been ready to sell off the business at that point when Kat had stepped up and said that she would run it. Everyone had laughed at the idea but when she made a profit the first year she took over after studying architecture and business in college, they stopped laughing.

The problem with running a construction business was that she was often not taken seriously due to the fact that she was a woman. None of her employees thought she knew what she was talking about when she suggested a few changes here and there. They had been rather resistant but slowly, as her changes began to make the work site safer and the business more profitable, she gained a bit of respect and they were more willing to go along with the bigger, more sweeping changes she had wanted to institute. They became more willing to learn the new techniques she suggested and her designs, while radical, were now a source of pride for her workers. People all around the city were beginning to take notice of her style and she had recently had to turn away work because she was already working on several other projects. Everything was working out just as she had planned and yet...yet she still felt this emptiness inside.

Kat's footsteps were all but silent as she walked down the dark and deserted street. She was not worried about being accosted. One good thing about Mike joining the Army was that he had taught her all manner of self-defense and how to use several different types of weapons. She always carried a Sig P226concealed on her person. It had been a bitch trying to obtain the permit here in NYC but the safety she felt knowing she had it, was priceless.

She turned a corner and suddenly found herself in the middle of a group of men pointing guns at each other. She immediately flattened herself against the building and reached for her own weapon, while taking in the situation. The group consisted of three men on her side of the street, one of them holding a young boy. The men were pointing their guns at a fourth man on the other side of the street. Part of her brain registered how good looking the man was while another part saw the small flicker of his eyes that indicated he knew she was there.

"Let the boy go. Trust me, it's not worth what your boss is paying you." The tall, dark-haired, handsome man said in a voice that sent chills up her spine.

"It's not always the money, my friend." The man next to the one holding the boy replied in heavily accented English. "This boy's father is the whoreson who sent my brother to prison!" The man spat in the direction of the boy, who tried to move away but he was brought up short by the one holding him and cuffed across the head**. **At this, Kat narrowed her eyes and made a decision. She hated it when people hurt kids!

"Well then, don't say I didn't warn you." The solitary man spoke once more.

"Oh, I don't think I have anything to be worried about." The kidnapper, as Kat realized he must be, replied. Her eyes quickly darted to the darkness behind the lone man who was trying to rescue the child. She saw a slight movement there and only had a split second to react. She was already kicking off her heels when she fired over the rescuer's head. Taken by surprise at shots fired from an unexpected direction, the kidnappers didn't have a chance to react before she had ducked and grabbed the kid up, running towards the solitary man. She sent a silent prayer of thanks heavenward as she heard him returning shots at the kidnappers. After appearing to be shooting at him, he could just as easily have returned her "shot", not realizing that she was shooting at someone sneaking up behind him. The man gave her enough cover fire, that she was able to shoot past him with the child and run quickly down an alley out of the line of fire. She heard his footsteps behind her and the shouts from the kidnappers. After dodging down another alley, she crouched down behind a dumpster to catch her breath. The boy looked up at her with wide, trusting eyes. A second later, they were joined by the boy's would-be rescuer.

"Well Ms... it seems that both young Jim here and I owe you some thanks."

"It's Kat, and you're welcome."

"Thank you Miss Kat, your timing was..."

"No, it's just Kat. And could we quit the small talk here? I'm pretty sure that getting shot at cuts through all the social niceties."

The man gave her a smirk and nodded. "As you say, Kat. I'm Reese. Now, if you'd hand Jim over to me, we need to get out of here. Those Russians won't dare give up. They were paid to do a job and if they don't accomplish it...it won't go well for them."

Kat handed the boy over to Reese and as she did, her hand brushed his. The incidental contact lit her up like a bolt of lightning and she felt parts of her respond, causing her to almost gasp aloud. 'Oh hell, what a time to have feelings like that! Get yourself together, Kat!' She berated herself. She followed Reese quietly down to the end of the alley and down yet another.

Without warning, a shot rang out from in front of them. "Stop!" A harsh voice came from a doorway and one of the kidnappers stepped out, followed by the other three. "There are very few ways out of this area, my friend. And none of them will get you out of this situation! Now, drop your weapons!"

Kat hesitated but threw hers down after she saw Reese drop his. She couldn't believe that he was giving up so easily! One of the men drew a knife out of his belt and approached Reese and the boy.

"Kat." Was all Reese said when he shoved the boy in her direction. Reese then positioned himself in front of her and the boy. The man with the knife just smiled evilly and continued to approach Reese.

Kat grabbed a hold of the boy's small shoulders and pushed him into the doorway behind her. She was determined that no one would harm him. The man with a knife was joined by a second and then a third, all approaching Reese, and all with knives in their hand. 'This is going to get messy.' Was her last thought before instinct took over. Reese dodged two of the men almost at the same time while the third feigned trying to get under his guard. Instead, the third kidnapper rushed right towards her. She managed to block his slash while earning only a nick in return. In front of her she saw Reese kick out and connect with one of his enemies but she didn't have time to observe anything else as her attacker came at her once more. She quickly used one of the moves her brother taught her and in one quick twisting motion, she managed to disarm and knock out her attacker. She leaned down and scooped up Reese's Sig from the ground and shot at the last remaining kidnapper as Reese finished taking down the two who had come after him. Then she reached down, picked up her own Sig and tucked it into the waistband at the small of her back.

In the silence, they both stood there panting. Reese recovered first. "Those were some very good moves there Kat. Remind me never to pick a fight with you! Where did you learn to fight like that?"

His words sent a thrill through Kat. For some reason, she felt like grinning like an idiot. She didn't have a chance to answer though because his phone rang at that exact instant. Giving her a rueful smile that made her legs feel like mush, he turned his back to her and answered it.

"What is it Carter?" He paused. "NOW? But I'm not quite done here. Yes, I have the boy. And you're sure? Ok, I'll be there in just a few minutes." Reese turned back to her.

"Well, it appears I'm needed elsewhere, RIGHT NOW according to my...'boss'. Let me call you a cab before I return Jim here home to his father."

"I'll be fine. You go on and do what you need to do. Bosses shouldn't be ignored." She smiled, thinking of what would happen if any of HER men tried to ignore her orders. "You never know when they'll replace you!"

Kat's smile almost knocked him off his feet, and it was a second before Reese could reply, "I doubt that I'll be replaced...but I'll feel better knowing that you're safe in a cab. It's the least I can do."

Kat recognized the stubborn look in his eyes. God knows she'd seen it enough in her own eyes at times, when lookingin the mirror**,** so she accepted his offer. Besides, she no longer had any shoes and she wasn't about to go back and look for them! They walked over several streets until they located one that was a bit busier. As Reese hailed her a cab, Kat felt a tug on her skirt. She leaned down and looked the child in the eyes. "You take care of yourself, Jimmy." The boy threw his arms around her neck and hugged her fiercely.

"Thank you for saving me, kitty cat." He whispered in her ear. She hugged him back and then looked up at Reese as he was holding the door open for her. He had a strange look in his eyes.

"Thank you again Kat, for your assistance tonight."

She gave the boy, Jim, one last squeeze before she stood and walked over to the cab. She stepped down onto the street and stood between the door and Reese and looked up at him. She certainly wouldn't call herself short, at 5'6, she was actually considered average height but the way she had to angle her neck just to meet his gaze, she 'felt' awfully short at the moment. Until then, she hadn't noticed how exceptionally tall he was.

"I don't know what your role in all 'this' was tonight but, you're welcome."

She saw Jim walk over and tug on Reese's coat. The smile that he gave the boy as he looked down at him just about knocked her over. Jim's little eyes flicked up at her and then back at John and then he whispered. "Mr. Reese, I have to go potty."

"OK, Jim. Just a second." John looked back up at Kat and the side of his mouth jerked up into this little half smile that almost made her giggle.

She smirked back at him. "I think you need to go Reese. Little Jim there, is doing... 'the dance'." He didn't respond but he did look down at Jim.

Kat moved to get into the cab but she was stopped by his hand on her arm. "Would you like to... maybe... meet for coffee, or...something, sometime?"

Jim tugged on Reese's coat again as he was bouncing. "Please, Mr. Reese. I gotta go bad."

He glanced down at Jim again and then back at Kat. She inhaled to respond but he continued before she could get the first word out. "To thank you...for your help tonight, Kat."

"Reese..I'd really...umm." Her voice broke as she felt his thumb stroke her arm. She took another deep breath to steady both her breathing and her nerves. "John...please call me John." He quickly got out.

"OK, John..."

He really liked the way she said his name.

"Mr. Reeeese." Jim whispered again.

"I'd...like that, but I really think you've gotta go now." She looked down to little Jim, insistently tugging on John's coat again. Then her eyes flickered over to his fingers encircling her arm. He held her for another second before he removed his hand. He nodded and reached down to take the boy's hand in his and Kat couldn't help but notice how it completely swallowed up Jim's tiny little hand.

"OK Jim, let's go." And then he turned and they were rushing down the sidewalk, probably headed to the closest bodega. She turned to get into the cab when she heard John's voice calling her.

"Kat! Will you meet me tomorrow... at The Coffee Pot?"

She smiled as answered back. "9th and 49th, right?"

"Yes! Nine O'Clock?"

"I'll see you then!" He raised an arm in a wave and then turned back around to hurry away with Jim.

She could feel the achingly wide smile on her face as she got into the cab. A date...she had a date! Well, OK maybe not a real date, but she was meeting a man...for coffee. 'Holy God that man was enticing', she thought. _And_ he had good taste in guns and could definitely handle it well, _and_ he had saved a child, and he was so...tall. She sighed heavily and leaned her head against the backseat. She closed her eyes and started replaying the events of the evening. She wondered how he had become involved in saving a kidnapped little boy. He certainly didn't seem like law enforcement. Maybe he was a private investigator that had a military background. When she had caught some of the fight between John and two of the kidnappers she had immediately thought military. Some of his moves reminded her of some of the moves that her brother and his friends had taught her. That was definitely one of the questions she had for him tomorrow.

The cab pulled up to the front of her brownstone.. Kat handed the cabbie some money and stepped out onto the sidewalk. She bounced up the stairs to the front door and let herself in.  
She walked into her apartment, pocketed her keys and hung her coat up on the wall hook. For the first time in...she wasn't even sure how long, she didn't head straight for the kitchen to start her dinner. Instead she headed for her bedroom. She flipped on the light and walked over to her closet.

'What am I going to wear tomorrow?' Kat thought. She didn't want to dress up for coffee on a Saturday morning but she certainly wasn't going to go looking like a slob either. She decided on a long sundress with a light sweater. Just enough to keep the morning chill out. She also decided on a pair of high heeled sandals which would make her feel less...short next to him. She chuckled to herself. Usually it was the exact opposite. She hated having to worry about wearing anything higher than her everyday work pumps around men because anything higher and she would tower over them.She knew men were sensitive about those things and she tried to be conscious of that. She also knew that they might feel a little differently about her if they knew she could take down most of them in a fight without much effort. Then there were the steel-toed boots that she wore around the work site which made her feel even less feminine. She might have to dress a little less feminine while at work, but afterwards she liked to dress like the woman she was.

Kat spent the rest of her evening lying on the couch thinking about the man she was meeting with tomorrow and trying desperately to calm her racing heart. She wasn't able to do it so eventually she went in and took a long, hot, bath to help relax her before she crawled into bed. She ended up tossing and turning until almost midnight when she finally succumbed to the welcomed peace of sleep.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Kat woke much earlier than she would normally have on a Saturday morning. Typically, she would sleep until she couldn't ignore any longer the sun's bright rays shining down on her through the bedroom window, but not this morning. She looked over at the clock; it was almost six thirty. She jumped out of bed and headed for the shower. She washed her long hair and took extra care when drying and combing it out until it was smooth and shining. She swept it back and put on some makeup. She didn't go all out, only because this was a morning date, not an evening date but she still made up her eyes. She loved putting on the extra little finishing touches that she didn't...wouldn't do when she went to work. It was hard enough being taken seriously as a woman in the construction business but to put on makeup and try to look feminine would have made it even harder, even being the owner of the damn company.

Kat stepped back from the mirror and surveyed the first layers of her look and she was satisfied. She walked back into her bedroom and slipped on her dress and sweater. She glanced at the clock; it was almost eight. She figured she'd leave early and be able to have a few minutes to make sure she was calm before Reese...John, got there. She put on her shoes, grabbed a little purse that she could wear across her chest like a tiny messenger bag, to carry her wallet in. She wasn't going to take her gun to her date. Plus she really didn't need it during the day or while she was with HIM. Based on the little she knew of John Reese, she suspected he was never without his gun. She grabbed her wallet and cell, threw them in her purse and locked her door as she stepped out into the hall and down to the street.

It only took Kat fifteen minutes to get to The Coffee Pot. She liked this place. The lines were never long like at the Starbucks a block away and the coffee was infinitely better. She also liked the atmosphere better. There were several nice couches, all leather, some comfy looking chairs, tables scattered here and there and a little stage for the occasional live band. It was a nice place to come in the evenings when a local band was scheduled. It was never over-crowded but even when it was busy she never felt uncomfortable like in some other places she'd been out to with her friends. She just didn't enjoy the club scene anymore. She would much rather spend time with friends in a place where she could hear herself think and where every other guy wasn't trying to get into her pants.

She walked up to the counter and ordered a simple mocha latte. When the barista handed it to her, she asked Kat if she needed anything else. She went ahead and ordered a cinnamon scone since she still had about a half hour before John arrived. She went to one of the tables up near the front and sat down to wait. The scone was delicious and so was the coffee. From her table she could people-watch through the large front window, and of course watch for _him._ The closer it got to nine, the more she felt her stomach flip-flopping around inside her. 'Butterflies...HA'! Nothing that small and delicate could feel as intense as her insides felt at the moment. She wasn't even sure why...she'd been on plenty of dates and even some blind dates, and none of them had made her _this_ nervous. Deep down, she knew why but she wasn't about to let her mind entertain the notion at the moment...

She looked at the clock again, five after nine. She frowned but didn't start worrying yet. Not everyone was as freakish about being on time as her; she'd been kept waiting before. She got up to throw away her napkins and the now empty cup, and grabbed a magazine before she sat back down at her table. She allowed herself to become immersed in the article about some little starlet who was having issues with drug addiction. When she couldn't take the poor writing and the even worse pictures anymore, she looked at the clock again and saw it was almost ten. She sighed and closed the magazine, went to put it back into the rack and walked out the door. She couldn't believe he'd stood her up. John didn't really seem like the type of man that made plans and then didn't show. Kat ran through the conversation from last night as she walked down the sidewalk back home. He had definitely said The Coffee Pot, and confirmed the location. He had said nine... Wait a minute, she thought. He _had_ said nine, but he hadn't specified am or pm...she had just assumed he meant in the morning. Maybe he had meant nine in the evening? The thought had her smiling, that maybe, just maybe she hadn't been stood up after all. She had a bounce back in her step by the time she got back home again. She was going to get dressed up and be back at the coffee shop at nine and hopefully meet John then. She wouldn't let herself think that she'd had the time right this morning...she would stay positive until she was proven otherwise...

~~~~~~~Last Night~~~~~~~~

John got Jim to a little bodega just down the street so he could use "the potty" and then returned the boy promptly to his father. When John got back to his apartment and finally stepped into the steaming hot shower, his mind turned to the woman who had helped him so efficiently...Kat. The thought brought a smile to his face. Where had she come from? Where did she learn how to fight like that? From the little he'd seen, her moves were military based, but she was most certainly _not _in the service. She intrigued him; a pretty woman, who could handle herself in a fight. But there was something else about her...he'd been around plenty of beautiful women, Detective Carter, Dr. Tillman, Zoe, that sick and twisted Dr. Turing, aka "Root", and he hadn't been tempted...not once, to ask any of _them _out. He bowed his head into the spray, allowing the water to wash the sweat and dust from the earlier fight off of his body. He also hoped that it would allow some clarity to his thoughts on Kat. The hot water was like a caress to his sore muscles, running in rivulets down his neck, chest, back, and finally down to his legs. Instead of clarity, the relaxing nature of the water brought on different kinds of thoughts about the woman.

Her long, dark auburn hair had been pulled back into a ponytail. He imagined reaching back and sliding the holder down, freeing the silky strands so that he could run his fingers through it. Then he threaded his fingers through it again and closed his hands. He used them to pull her head gently back so that her face was turned up towards his. Her eyes shone up at him, but he couldn't tell what color they were. He hadn't been able to see...it had been just a bit too dark. He would find out tomorrow... Her eyes shone up at him and her mouth parted as he leaned down to take her lips with his...

'What the hell!' He thought. He'd known the woman for less than an hour. He shouldn't be thinking of her like _that_! But God help him, he _wanted_ to think of her like that. It had been SO long since his mind had turned to those types of thoughts about a woman!He shook his head as he grabbed the shampoo bottle. He squeezed some out into his hand and started massaging the foamy liquid onto his hair...his thoughts unwittingly turned back to Kat again. Her fingers were running over his scalp and then drifting down his neck and across his shoulders. They slid slowly down past his shoulder blades, down the curve of his spine, until they reached his... John shook his head again and quickly flipped the hot water handle to 'off' and stepped further into the water as it quickly turned to freezing. It did what he intended it to do. He rinsed the shampoo from his hair and the rest of his body and turned the water off. He grabbed the towel off the rack and dried faster than he normally would have as he got out of the shower. He wrapped the towel around his waist and headed straight to his bed where he collapsed and fell asleep almost immediately.

When John woke the next morning, it was to his cell phone ringing insistently. He glanced at the screen and groaned. He pressed the little green button to connect the call. Ever since Finch had been kidnapped by Root two weeks ago, he had been contacted by the Machine through his secure cell. The same way that John had seen Harold contacted about Henry Peck's number except that now, the Machine was contacting John directly to let him know when a new number had come in.

John got out of bed and walked over to the computer on his table and pressed a key, which woke the computer up and then he typed in his password to access the machine. This was something else that had changed since Finch had been taken. After the strange call from the payphone in which a computerized voice had told him to go back to the library,John had gone back to the library to collect all of the computers and the "black box", as he had started to refer to the case that held the 'backdoor' mainframe to the Machine. He had sat down in Finch's chair and pressed a key. The monitors had immediately jumped to life and a box had popped up asking for the new password. He'd stared at it for several minutes before entering a ten character password. He hadn't been sure what it would do or if it would work, but it did. Several things began scrolling across the monitors and the printer started beeping and then paper started moving into it and spitting back out not only a picture of a man but a copy of his driver's license, his work history, and several other documents. John didn't know what he was supposed to do; he felt...lost. Finch had always directed their conversation regarding a new number...which is what John assumed this information was for. He sat for a few more minutes before he started looking over the printouts in earnest. He _could_ do this...and _would; _for Harold. He couldn't, in good conscience, let something happen to someone else while he was searching for Harold. John would continue his job as he searched for Harold. It was the least he could do.

John had ended up finding the man, George Stanfield, whose number had come up. He had even worked with both Carter and Fusco to take down Mr. Stanfield, who was one of Elias's men on the outside. Mr. Stanfield had been stalking a woman, Katherine Greyson for quite some time. The woman owned Greyson Family Construction and the reason she had been targeted was because she had been hired for several jobs that were in Elias's territory. Apparently, Eliashad not taken kindly to the idea of not being able to oversee the permits or control what was able to be built and where. John had never seen the woman in person, he had only heard her name mentioned in the conversations that he hadoverheard between Elias and Stanfield. Elias was extremely adamant about the woman taking an extended visit to see her parents. Stanfield had laughed at that and had asked how long her dearly departed parents had been gone. John had immediately emailed a copy of the recording to Carter and sent Fusco out to the construction site where Ms. Greyson had been working, while John had met up with Stanfield. He'd made quick work of taking down the man less than a block from the site and happily handcuffed him and delivered him to Fusco. The whole operation had run incredibly smooth for being the first one that he had handled without Harold.

After that, he had packed up everything in the main room, along with the black box, and all of his weapons stash, and loaded it all into the second Lincoln that Harold had kept on hand, just for emergencies. John had requisitioned it and deemed this an emergency situation. He took it all to his apartment and set it back up there. He was not sure if the library had been compromised or not, but he wasn't going to take any chances. He had had an overwhelming sense of panic when he booted everything up for the first time but in seconds all of the monitors were again coming to life. John had worked two numbers in the two weeks following; both victims, which made John feel all the better about pulling himself together and working the numbers while still searching fiercelyfor Harold.

He had been out on several leads that had come from information provided by the Machine but each time John thought that he had narrowed down Harold's location, he came up short. It was so frustrating, and he was beginning to understand how Harold felt before he had found John.

By the time that John booted things up and made a quick cup of coffee, today's number had been printed. John sighed. He had really been looking forward to seeing Kat again this morning, had been dreaming about it almost all night in fact, a welcome change from the nightmares that often took over his dreams. He tried not to worry about the fact that she would think he was a jerk and that he had stood her up. He should have gotten her number last night! Jim's timing had been terrible. He was elated when she had agreed to meet him at The Coffee Pot at...wait, he'd told her nine o'clock, but he hadn't specified AM or PM! So, there was a chance, a small one, that he might still be able to meet up with her tonight, if this case was quick. Damn, he'd MAKE it quick! He knew he had a responsibility to Harold and the numbers, one he took very seriously, but he had been wishing for quite some time for a bit more of a normal life. He knew a family would be impossible in his line of work but he couldn't help wishing for someone to share things with. Someone with whom he could be just John and not Mr. Reese, the ex-CIA operative and killer. Another part of his brain realized that whomever that woman was, just being with him would put her in danger. He wasn't sure if he could do that to another woman, but... then again, leaving Jessica hadn't helped HER in the end. In fact his leaving had had just the opposite effect! So, perhaps, just perhaps, if he could find someone who could take care of herself and he was careful and extra protective of her, he MIGHT just be able to have a relationship...

He shook himself out of his reverie and looked at the information the Machine had given him about this latest number. He memorized all the information including the man's place of employment... wait...wasn't that the same prison where Elias was currently being held? Thomas Becker worked at Lincoln Correctional Facility in Manhattan. He'd been a corrections officer for ten years now. Once again, Reese wished that Harold was here to provide him with more information. If only Reese could get into Becker's financial records, he might be able to tell if he was being paid for some less than legitimate work. Well, there was no hope for it, he'd have to investigate this the hard way. So he got dressed, grabbed Detective Still's badge and drove over to the prison to question Becker. Perhaps a visit with Elias might not be a bad idea either, he'd been trained to read people during his days with the CIA and while his track record with Elias wasn't the best, he DID think he was becoming more and more familiar with the way the man's mind worked.

Arriving at the prison, Reese was just signing in when an alarm sounded. Instinctively, he reached for his gun in the waistband of his pants, only to realize he'd given it up. No firearms were allowed inside the prison. 'Fuck! This has to be Elias!' Reese swore to himself. To make matters worse, as standard procedure, Reese along with several lawyers servicing the inmates, were locked down until the emergency was identified. The lawyers milled around, speculating as to the nature of the emergency, but Reese just paced back and forth in front of the barred door, waiting. Finally, thirty minutes later, the doors opened and an officer escorted them to the main entrance. Another officer brought Reese his gun and both told everyone that there was a situation in the prison and that for their own safety they were not going to be allowed inside the prison today.

Reese was just approaching his car when his cell rang. Looking at the caller ID, he recognized the number of the phone he had once given Carter.

"Yes, Detective?"

"I just got a call from Lincoln Correctional Facility. You might want to meet me over there. Apparently our friend Elias has escaped. They called me since I was the arresting officer."

"I'm already on it Carter. I'll meet you here AFTER you find a safe place for your son. Elias took him once, he just might do it again as revenge for your putting him in prison."

"I already have Fusco taking him to a safe house. I'll meet you there in twenty minutes."

Once Carter arrived, it became clear that Reese's help would be unnecessary. The warden had taken a head count and already come to the conclusion Thomas Becker had been the one who helped Elias escape due to the fact that he was the only one of the officers missing. Since he was still wanted by just about every law enforcement agency, Reese would be of little use to Carter in figuring out just how Elias had escaped. Instead, he told Carter he'd look around the area and see if he was able to pick up Elias's trail.

Reese walked around the prison in ever increasing circles, looking in alleys and abandoned buildings for any sign of Elias or Becker. It wasn't until late afternoon, that he stumbled across the body. He immediately called Carter up to inform her of the whereabouts of Becker's body. The man had been shot once between the eyes. 'So much for loyalty', Reese thought. He straightened up and decided that he'd done enough for the day. His number was both the perp and victim in this case and with Elias once more out on the street, Reese knew most of his days would now be spent saving people from Elias's organization. Determined to enjoy one last evening of freedom from the constant assault of the numbers, Reese hurried home to get ready to meet Kat, praying all the while that she would be there.

**Thanks for reading (and reviewing) hint hint

Also, with FF yanking several Mature level fics, we have started posting our fics over at another strictly POI site where they allow Mature level fics as is…

There are so many talented authors on the site, and some really great fics!

/POI/


	3. Chapter 3

Hello all you lovely readers! Just a quick thanks to all of you that are following our fic and especially for those of you that review! ReeseisLAVAhot and I read and appreciate each and every one of them

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thehookupzone POI /

Chapter 3

Kat spent the day trying to keep busy so that she wouldn't drive herself crazy wondering if John would actually be there that night. She realized that the odds were slim to none, but there _was _a chance. Besides, it wouldn't do her any good to sit around and it would only serve to make the day drag on.

First she busied herself with cleaning her apartment. She set up her phone in the stereo dock and turned on her playlist that she had appropriately named 'cleaning songs'. It was filled with loads of upbeat songs that actually made the otherwise daunting chore, a lot more fun. Kat danced around to songs from 'Take A Hint' to 'Pour Some Sugar On Me'. Oh she loved her 80's hair bands... For the first time ever, she wasn't overjoyed when the cleaning was done. The task didn't take nearly as long as she'd hoped. That's when she realized she was in trouble... Wanting to clean?... Not happy when she was done?... What the hell was wrong with her?

Kat considered calling her hair dresser to see if she had any appointments available but decided against it. She didn't want to go overboard on anything, just in case John didn't show. She did however, decide to walk down to the little nail salon just a couple of blocks away to get a mani-pedi. It was something that she liked treating herself to every once in a while and this seemed like the perfect time and occasion for such a treat. She slipped on her sandals and headed out.

Thankfully, Luna, her favorite nail tech was available and Kat was able to relax for a bit. She listened as Luna told her about her recent trip back to Vietnam to visit her family, her twins who had just started Kindergarten, and then she was asking Kat if she had any fun plans for her Saturday night. Kat must have dozed off while listening to Luna, because the woman patted her leg gently when she didn't answer her question. Luna's endless talk in her thick accent had always had a calming effect on Kat and this time was no different. She shook her head to wake herself up a bit.

"I'm sorry, Luna. What did you say?"

The little woman chuckled and asked. "So, you have plans tonight? Saturday night...hot date?" Luna wiggled her eyebrows in what Kat assumed was meant to be a sly look, but it just made her giggle.

"I don't know Luna. Maybe."

"You pretty girl Kat. You should have date on Saturday night. I have cousin. He good man. His wife die almost year ago. He has job."

Kat smiled warmly at Luna and then leaned her head back against the comfortable leather pedicure chair. "You're very sweet Luna, thank you. But I'm hoping...maybe, tonight might work out. If not, I promise to give you a call." Luna chuckled and patted Kat's leg again indicating that she was finished. She walked up to the front of the shop and paid Luna, leaving a generous tip and walked out admiring her nails. Luna always did a fantastic job and Kat loved the feeling of being pampered and having something to show for it.

The dark pink looked lovely against her lightly tanned skin. She had been blessed with her father's skin and she tanned easily, but had also received some of her mother's genes too. Her mother had been a true red-head. Fair skinned and easily sunburned. Kat's hair had some her mother's red but it was something she really only got to appreciate when the sun was shining on it. That's when she could pick out the red highlights that were all from her mom. Her thoughts drifted lovingly to her parents. She missed them terribly; her mother especially. She would have loved to talk with her about John and what had happened this morning and... Kat stopped her train of thought. She couldn't bring her mother back and wishing for something that wasn't going to happen was just bringing her spirits down. She had to be tough; there was no room in her life for feeling sorry for herself. Kat rolled her shoulders back and tilted her chin up and continued on her way back to her apartment.

About a block away from her apartment she stopped at a little boutique. She'd seen a little black dress that she thought would be perfect to wear tonight. She walked in and asked the woman at the counter if she could try on the dress. Kat was in luck; the dress was in her size. She took it back to the dressing room and tried it on. She was extremely happy with how it looked on her. It had thick straps and a sweet heart neckline. It hugged her full breasts nicely and then fell loosely around the lower part of her body. It stopped about midway down her thighs which showcased her long legs. She twisted back and forth a couple of times and fell in love with the way the dress moved. Kat looked at the price tag and winced but then thought, 'screw it'. She rarely treated herself, so why not go all out today? She got dressed and took the dress up to the counter, paid for it and once again started back to her apartment.

By the time Kat got home it was almost six thirty. She went and hung her dress up and then threw a T.V. dinner in the microwave because she was starving. She hadn't eaten anything since the scone she'd had this morning and she'd done quite a bit today to work up an appetite. She sat down and watched a bit of the news while she ate and then went to draw a bath. She started the water and squeezed some bath gel with lavender and rosemary essential oils into the stream and inhaled deeply, enjoying the luscious scents. Then she wrapped her long hair up on top of her head and secured it with a jaw clip. She stepped in when it was about half full and reclined onto the back of the tub. The hot water quickly eased her muscles that had been tense with anticipation since this morning. She didn't like feeling nervous, but what she _did _like was the fact that she was excited about meeting up with a man. That had to mean something. She just hoped that he was feeling the same way and that he would be there tonight.

Kat heard her cell vibrating and looked over at where it was sitting on the rug by the tub. She rolled her eyes when she saw the caller ID display. She almost picked it up and answered it but she decided not to. It was Liam McCabe; a foreman at one of her local sites.Just about every other night he'd call her up and it was always the same thing, something that he deemed an emergency but never really turned out to be.The man was also constantly hitting on her, albeit, never in an overly obvious way because he had found out how protective of Kat some of her guys could be. Their 'talk' with Liam had staved off the innuendos for a while but then he had started back up again, but this time he was much more covert about it. He would always seem to 'turn up' when Kat was away from the rest of the crew, off by herself. It wasn't that she was afraid of Liam, he seemed like a nice enough guy but he kind of creeped her out sometimes. What didn't help wasthe fact that he was an extremely large specimen of a man. Six-three, maybe four, big hulking chest, and legs the size of young oak trees. She knew deep down that she probably couldn't fend off someone of his size and that's probably why she didn't mind her crew being so watchful.

She couldn't imagine why Liam would be calling her at...she glanced at the time...holy shit it's seven-thirty! She stood up and grabbed the towel and quickly dried herself off. She ran in and put on her flimsy little black, lace panties and bra set. She tried to not think about whether she would be the one taking them back off later, but she couldn't help it. As she slipped her dress over her head it caressed her skin lightly and her thoughts wandered to how it might feel if it were John's fingers running down her body rather than the dress. She felt her breath quicken and caught herself staring at a spot on the wall as she day-dreamed about a man she'd met only yesterday, stripping her out of her clothes and then taking her slowly on her own bed. She shook her head and blinked rapidly as she looked at herself in the mirror. 'What the hell is wrong with you?' Kat asked her reflection and then she smiled at herself. She actually looked pretty darn good, if she did say so herself and she was once again pleased with her decision to buy the dress earlier. She slipped the clip out of her hair and let her hair cascade down her back, well past her shoulders. She turned to view the dress from the back and she was almost as pleased with that side as she was with the front.

Kat pivoted and headed back to the bathroom to put on her makeup. She added a darker shade to her eyeshadow for the evening and some dark blue eye liner that she smudged to perfection, and topped it off with a light coat of mascara. Her finishing touches were a light dusting of bronzer and then a light rose-colored lip balm. She was once again pleased with the results and couldn't help but smile as she slipped on her red wedge sandals, just to add a bit of color. Plus she could walk a pretty good distance in them and not be uncomfortable. Another glance at the clock and she decided it was time to go. She'd been put a little behind by her musings about John but she was determined not to let that make her nervous or feel rushed. It was only eight, she had plenty of time to get there and settle in before nine. She grabbed her little black purse, keys, and cell and headed out the door.

About fifteen minutes later Kat found herself at The Coffee Pot's bar. Thankfully they served drinks that were a little stronger than coffee after seven. She ordered a Cosmo and let her eyes survey the patrons, those that were sitting alone, those in groups, and those that looked like they were waiting on others to arrive and join them. By the looks of the equipment she saw being set up on stage, there was going to be a live band playing tonight. Then she took in the empty tables, couches and chairs. She decided on a couch facing the stage. Most of the couches, larger chairs and love seats had been moved from the back part of the place up closer to the stage. There was a little alcove further back in the building where she and John might have a little more privacy but she wasn't sure about how John might see that...if he showed up. 'Damn! Why did her thoughts keep turning to what she and John, virtually a stranger, might or might not do? You'd think she was a teenager the way her hormones were raging!' 

She took her drink, and walked back to the couch and sat down. The drink was superb and she sipped from it frequently, hoping it would calm her nerves. Kat watched the band set up and start to tune up their instruments as she continually checked the time. It was almost nine when she saw the door open out of the corner of her eye. She turned and her breath caught in her throat. Several people had come in at once but in that group, at the very back holding the door open for them all, was John. Her heart skipped a beat and in the next moment it was in her throat, making it very hard for her to swallow. Kat stood slowly, she wasn't sure if her legs would be steady enough to hold her. John stepped in and her eyes raked over him in obvious appreciation. He had on a gun metal gray, button down shirt, and dark blue jeans that she would swear were made just for him. She stood there watching him look over the crowd, searching... a look of hopeful anticipation. When his eyes found her, standing there looking back at him, the smile that lit up his face floored her. She wasn't sure that she'd ever seen anything so beautiful in her life.

Kat walked slowly, so she wouldn't fall flat on her face and embarrass the hell out of herself, towards John. She couldn't help the smile that spread across her face. She felt like she was grinning like an idiot. She lowered her head and watched her feet move across the relatively short space between her and John. When they met just at the edge of the bar, Kat stopped and looked up into the face of the man she'd been waiting for...well, for what seemed like forever, but really, it had only been a day.

"Hi." He greeted her simply.

'God, he was even more beautiful than she remembered.' Granted, she hadn't been able to see him very clearly under the very few street lights when he'd put her in the cab last night, but oh what the darkness had kept hidden under its cover! She'd known how tall he was, but now, standing here in front of her, with no cab door between them, he was larger than life. The building's lights were shining down on his hair creating glistening highlights against the smattering of grey strands. His cheekbones were absolutely ridiculous, like something out of one of those cheesy romance novels she would sometimes read. But the eyes, above and beyond everything else, those eyes were the focal point for her. The blue of his eyes was a hue that couldn't possibly register on the color spectrum. She tried a couple times to respond before she was able to find her voice.

"Hi."

They stood there staring at each other for what could have been seconds, minutes, or hours, she wasn't sure which, nor did she care. All that mattered to Kat at that moment was that he was here.

"Would you like another drink, Kat?"

His question snapped her back into the present.

"Um..." She looked down at her empty glass and then back up at him. "Yes, please." She answered, as she set the glass onto the bar. John turned and waved at the person behind the counter and indicated that Kat would have another of the same. He ordered himself a Stella Artois and then handed Kat her drink. "Thank you." She told him.

"Thank _you…_ for your assistance last night, Kat."

"Oh...you're welcome. I'm glad I could help." John's eyes flickered somewhere behind her and then back to her. He noted that the only seat now available was the one that offered the most privacy.

"Would you like to go sit down?"

Kat nodded. "Sure." She turned and saw that a group of couples had taken up residence where she had previously been sitting. In fact, the majority of the seats anywhere within the vicinity of the stage were now taken. Kat hesitated before she found one of the love seats that were open...in the very back…in the same little alcove that she had purposely chosen not to sit in. She started towards it with John at her side and then she felt his hand lightly touch the small of her back. A gesture that may seem everyday to some women, but to Kat, it wasn't something that she had experienced often. She could feel the concentrated warmth of his palm in that one spot and she felt a sharp pull in her stomach, like she was going down a really steep hill on a roller coaster ride. She decided that she liked the feeling very much.

When they reached the plush leather love seat Kat looked up at John. "This OK with you? I didn't see anything else open." She gestured with her chin towards the band that had just started to play on stage. "It can fill up pretty quick on the nights they have the live bands here."

He smiled at her again and she thought she just might melt into a puddle on the floor. 'Damnit, she really needed to pull herself together or she was going to make a complete and utter fool of herself'.

"Sure. This will be just fine." John couldn't have picked a more perfect setting for their date if he'd tried. He wanted to get to know this beautiful, fascinating woman. Just as importantly, he wanted to know if she was as affected by him as much as he was by her.

He gestured for her to sit. She did so, leaving him to take the seat on her right. The love seat was a nice size, just enough room for two people to sit comfortably next to each other. It was also flanked by two side tables so that they could set their drinks down and not have to hold them for the duration of their stay. Kat didn't set hers down though, she needed to have something to keep her hands occupied. However, she almost regretted the fact when her hand twitched nervously at John's next words.

"I'm really sorry about this morning..." So he _had _meant nine in the morning and had missed it. Well, at least he was here now. That more than made up for it. "But I almost think it was worth it, being able to be here tonight." She raised her brows and her hand shook, almost spilling her drink. "You look lovely, Kat." His voice was soft and low, almost a whisper. The way he said it made his words feel like a caress over her skin.

"Oh..." She blinked slowly and then swallowed, with quite a bit of difficulty. "Thank you." She whispered.

'There was that smile again...' She thought.

"You're welcome."

"I'm glad you're here too. I was afraid that...you know." Her eyes dropped and she took a long drink before looking back up at him.

"That I had stood you up?" John finished for her. He winced as his fear was confirmed. He needed to let her know he'd had a good reason, that he would never disappoint her like that if he could help it.

"Mmm hmm." She nodded and then finished her drink rather quickly. 'God, he was going to think she was a lush!' Kat set the empty glass on the table and then she felt his hand on hers. Her head turned back around to look at him.

"I wouldn't do that...never on purpose. Something came up. There was an emergency and I had to go to work for a while."

Her hand felt like it was on fire where his skin was touching hers. "So... uh... what do you do? If you don't mind me asking."

His hand pulled back from hers slowly but his eyes held hers. "It's a bit complicated, but you could say that I'm an independent contractor."

"Oh... in what field?"

"Risk management." John answered without missing a beat. "What about you, Kat? What do you do?"

She sat up a little before she answered. A habit she had gotten into a long time ago. People tended to take her more seriously the straighter she sat...especially the men in her industry. "I own my own construction company, Greyson Family Construction." John cocked his brow at her. She was used to the surprised looks by now...a woman owning her own company, especially a construction company.

"Really?"

She nodded. "Yeah, my dad and uncle owned the business. When my parents passed away they left their part of the company to us. My uncle ran it after my dad died, hoping that Mike would want to take over his half of the business after school but my brother really didn't want any part in it. He actually joined the Army, which is where I learned what I know about fighting and weaponry. I hung out a lot with Mike and his buddies on base and they got a kick out of teaching his little sis how to beat up the boys that tried to get one over on a girl." She smiled at the memories her story was bringing up.

"Impressive." John said.

Kat chuckled. "Which part? The fact that I own my own company or the fact that I can take down a lot of men in a fight?"

"Both." John's eyes searched her face. Kat wasn't sure for what but his exploration made her self-conscious. She dropped her eyes again and felt her face warming. A second later she felt his fingers under her chin gently lifting her face until she raised her eyes again to meet his.

"Why do you do that?" He asked her as his head cocked to the side. He reminded her of an inquisitive child. His eyes wide and searching for knowledge.

"Do... what?" She was finding it increasingly difficult to speak with his fingers touching her. It was like he was sucking the intelligence right out of her. She really hated feeling like an idiot but she just couldn't seem to do anything about it.

"Lower your head, like you're embarrassed when you're complimented."

"I didn't realize...I was...I guess. I don't think I do, normally."

"So then, it's just me?" A small part of him was thrilled to know he was affecting her so strongly.

"Well,... um..." She kept stammering until she finally decided to stop trying to form coherent sentences. She sighed and then he slowly smiled at her. "God, John...I swear, I'm not always this..." She couldn't lower her head because his fingers were still holding her chin up.

"I think it's very...endearing..."

"Oh..." She breathed. His fingers left her chin to very softly trace along her jaw and then continued in a path down her neck. Her lips fell open as she gasped almost inaudibly.

"...and quite lovely." John thought her skin felt like the softest silk he could imagine. His fingers began sweeping feather light traces along her collar bone. He was no longer holding her chin up but she didn't lower it. Her eyes closed involuntarily as she savored the effects of his touch. His hand began the ascent back up her neck and came to rest, cradling her cheek where his thumb moved lazily across her skin. Her eyes slowly opened to find him leaning towards her, with his own eyes closed and less than an inch of space between them. All she had to do was move just the tiniest bit... and she wanted to. Oh, how she wanted to!

'What the hell was wrong with her'? Sitting here with this gorgeous man, ready and obviously willing to kiss her, and God knows what else, and she was hesitating? She asked herself again what was wrong with her before she answered herself...nothing. There was not a damn thing wrong with her. She closed the distance between them and felt heaven touch her lips. His other hand immediately rose to the other side of her face and pulled her in tighter. He didn't deepen the kiss immediately. Instead, she knew, he was allowing her all the control. She lifted one hand to thread her fingers through his short hair, and the other rose to stroke his face. Her subconscious mind told her that she should be careful with this man that she barely knew yet saw fit to accost in a public place, while her conscious mind had completely checked out a minute or so ago.

Kat opened her mouth to deepen the kiss and that seemed to be all the invitation John needed. He inhaled sharply and slid his arms around her back to pull her closer to him. His tongue demanded entrance into hers, which she gladly gave him. The soft velvety texture of his tongue entwining with hers elicited a soft moan. She heard his own answering response in the form of a low rumble that she felt deep in his chest. Her fingers that were wrapped around his head attempted to pull him even closer. Her other hand wrapped its way around his back where her fingers dug into him, trying to bring his body closer to hers.

Again, her subconscious was needling her to stop but for some reason she was completely unable to. It was like she was trying a drug for the first time and she just couldn't get enough. She wanted more; to keep her going on this luscious high. His hand had moved up from where her dress stopped to where her skin was accessible and bare. His fingers burned her skin there, she was sure of it...she would be able to see the burn marks in the mirror if she were to go look in a mirror. Her back arched which pushed her chest more firmly against his. She felt that deep rumble again...and then a much higher pitched rumble... There it was again. There was no way that sound was coming from John. She pulled back from him, her breath coming in deep gasps. His eyes searched hers as a worried look crossed his face.

"Did you hear...?" She started to say… 'There it was again'. Her head rolled forward and came to rest against his. "Oh for fuck's sake!" She ground out. She leaned back and pulled her damn cell phone out from her purse and looked at it murderously. "Fucking Liam." She grumbled. John's head snapped back at that. "I swear, I'm going to fire him on Monday." John cocked his head to the side. Kat looked up from her cell at John and read the inquisitive look he was giving her. "One of my foremen. Likes to call or text me for the tiniest things. He calls them emergencies, yet the 'emergencies' typically turn out to be _non_-emergencies and just an excuse to ask me out." John's eyes darkened at her explanation.

"John, I'm so sorry. Can you excuse me for just a minute while I take care of this?"

"Yes...of course."

"I'm so sorry...it'll just take me a minute..." She started to get up but he grabbed her waist and almost dragged her onto his lap and crushed her mouth with his. Her hands flew to his shoulders and grabbed onto him tightly. As quickly as he had started, he stopped and then pulled back to look at her. A wide smile pulled his lips up and his eyes crinkled into little slits. His long, dark eyelashes almost completely covered his eyes. She couldn't help but return the smile. His was so beautiful, it was like staring at a bright light and she almost felt blinded by it.

"Hurry back." He whispered.

"Ye..." She cleared her throat and tried again. "Yeah..." She very shakily stood up and walked towards the bathrooms where she was going to call Liam back and chew his ass up one side and down the other for interrupting her incredibly satisfying date.

She glanced back at John before she entered the hallway that led to the ladies room and she found him watching her intently while a smirk played at his lips. She gave him the most sexy over-the-shoulder smile that she could and then walked down the hall out of sight. Her smile immediately fell as she dialed Liam's number and walked into the ladies room.

Liam picked up on the first ring and started talking before she could get a word in. "Hi Kat, it's Liam."

"Liam, I've asked you before to please call me Ms. Greyson."

" I know, I'm sorry, I forgot... I'm sorry to bother you but there's been a break-in down at the site."

"What?" She practically yelled. "Oh no!" She wailed. "What's been taken, any of the large equipment?"

"No Ms. Greyson. None of the machinery, but the police need for you to come down and inventory the loss for them."

"Wait, wouldn't you have a better idea of what's missing Liam?"

"That's what I told 'em, but they said you gotta be there since you're the owner."

"Damnit. OK, I'll be there as quick as I can. Thanks for the call. Sorry, I couldn't get to my phone earlier."

"Oh, it's OK Ms. Greyson... Hot date or somethin'?"

"I don't really think that's any of your own business, Liam... I'll see you in a bit." She disconnected the call, took a deep breath, and walked out the door.

She gasped in surprise as she was immediately pressed against the wall and in the next second, John's mouth was once again pressed against hers. Oh how she wished that she could forget about the call she had just been on and stay with John, see what the night would bring...but she had to get down there to talk to the police. Her hands rose to encircle his neck as she pulled her mouth begrudgingly from his. He laid his forehead against hers as they both panted for breath.

"So, this Liam that called you. Is everything alright...is it another false alarm?"

She shook her head. "No...I actually do need to go down to the site and talk with the police."

"The police?" John stepped back and looked at her with concern.

"Yeah, there was a break in at the site and the police won't let Liam do the inventory for the theft. They'll only take it from me."

"I'm so sorry Kat."

"Yeah, me too..." She smiled warmly up at him. "This is by far the best date I've had in years."

"Well, that just means that we'll have to try for an even better one next time."

"Next time, huh?" Kat cocked a brow. "You still want to have a second date even though I'm running out on you after an hour during our first?"

"Oh yes, Kat. I definitely want to see you again. But this time, I'd like to have your number so that I can reach you if something were to come up... but I don't want it just so that I can call to reschedule, I would also like to have it so that I can call you to set up our next date."

She beamed up at him "Of course!" She replied, and even to her ears she sounded just a little over eager.

They exchanged numbers and then John gave her one more quick kiss before reluctantly letting her go. She walked just as reluctantly away from him and out the door into the cool New York night.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Once out in the cool air, Kat's head began to clear. 'Whoa!' She thought. That had to have been the most intense date she'd ever been on! Her body was still reeling from the feelings John had been oh-so-good at evoking within her. Perhaps this call from Liam was a good thing after all. Considering how quickly things had turned physical between her and John, she wouldn't have been at all surprised if they had ended up at her apartment tonight, sleeping together. Kat allowed herself a minute to imagine what that might be like, but she realized that she truly couldn't. The handful of men she had previously dated were boys compared to John's skilled expertise. She could tell _that_ just by the way that he'd kissed her, but oh what a kiss it had been. Her lips were still tingling. A cab pulled up to her as she signaled.

'Was THAT why she felt so drawn to the man?' No, Kat shook her head as she got into the cab. There was something else there, besides the pure, unadulterated attraction she felt towards him. Something about John; his presence, his actions, the way he moved...something. She couldn't quite put her finger on it but he made her feel safe, cared for and appreciated, so very feminine, and after spending most of her days acting like 'one of the guys; that was very important to her.

Even so, Kat wanted John to know that she wasn't in this for a one night stand. She wanted, no needed, something more than that. She picked up her phone to call him and tell him something to that effect when she suddenly decided not to; at least not until she had dealt with the situation at the work site. She wanted to gather her thoughts before asking John to explain just what he was looking for. She knew it was awfully early on to ask, but considering how fast the physical part of whatever 'this' was had happened, she needed to make sure her emotions didn't get involved just as quickly, especially if their interests in each other weren't the same. She turned off her phone so that she wouldn't be tempted to call him right now and turned her mind to how she was going to deal with the loss of equipment from her site.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

John watched Kat walk out the door. He had literally had to hold himself back from following her. He'd wanted so badly to offer to come with her to the site. He didn't like the fact that she was going there alone, even if the police would be there. He didn't like to think about her going alone to meet a man that; according to Kat, had a history of making up things just to get her around him. He just might have to have a word or two with this Liam. Unless he was reading the situation wrong, John thought he might be justified in telling this guy that he didn't share well with others. But the police presence was the main reason why he couldn't make that offer to go with her. He couldn't take the chance that he might be recognized. But, OH, he'd hated watching her walk out that door. He couldn't believe he'd let her go after less than an hour of their date. 'But what an hour it had been!' He smiled to himself as he got up to leave. He was elated that Kat seemed to want him as much as he wanted her. She was such a passionate woman, he doubted he'd be able to keep his hands off her the next time they met any more than he'd been able to this time. That thought brought on another, less welcome, one. He hoped she didn't think he was just looking to sleep with her! Or worse yet, what if that was all she was looking for from him? He frowned at the thought. Would that be ok? Could he live with this being just a physical thing? One of his heads said, 'Hell yes!', he was a man after all, but his heart wasn't so sure. He touched his ear, ready to dial Kat's number and... his phone beeped, startling him. He looked down at the text he'd received and all the blood drained from his face.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When Kat got to the site, she was surprised not to find any police cars by the gate. Puzzled, she paid the cabbie and got out. Kat ignored the warning bells that started going off in her head the second her feet hit the gravel drive up to the site. She walked past the temporary guard station. It was empty...Where was Frank? Surely he'd be here too? 'He'd better be anyway!', because she wanted an explanation and NOW for how thieves had gotten into the site and stolen equipment, no matter how small, right out from under his nose!

Kat walked to the trailer, even more bewildered that there seemed to be no one around and even more odd; nothing seemed out of place from where it belonged. 'What the hell was going on here? Had Liam been able to take care of the police after all and they had all finished up, or more likely; had he called her down here under false pretenses?' If so, she was definitely going to fire his ass and not even wait until Monday!

Suddenly from behind, she felt something hard pressed against the small of her back. She heard the telltale click of a gun being cocked. "Hello Kat, thanks for coming down here so quickly." She heard Liam say in a quiet, menacing voice. "If you'll hand me your phone please." Since the words were followed by a sharp jab of the gun, she knew it wasn't a request.

"Liam, what the hell is going on here?" She asked, trying to keep her voice calm. She knew as long as he stayed close to her with the gun, she had a chance at disarming him.

As if he'd read her mind, he stepped back, allowing her to turn around. "Oh, you'll find out soon enough, Kat. Now, march over to the building and call down the elevator."

Kat reluctantly walked towards the building but just as she was passing Liam, she had an idea. She dropped her keys next to him and when she leaned down to retrieve them, she meant to swing up and hit him in a very vulnerable spot.

Unfortunately, Liam must have known what she had in mind because he stepped back away from her. "No funny business or else!" Kat was forced to stand up and Liam prodded her towards the elevator. "Get going! And take off your shoes. You'll fall if you try and walk the beams in those."

When they reached the elevator, she inserted her key into the mechanism that allowed the elevator to be raised and lowered. "Go to the third floor." Liam told her and she pressed the button. The elevator jerked into motion. Once they reached the third floor, Liam reached over and broke the key in the mechanism so that the elevator could not be called from below. Now, the only way down would be through the material chute.

'This doesn't look good.' Kat thought. "Liam, what is going on here? Why did you call me here and where are the police?" She tried to distract him with her questions.

"Give me your hands!" Liam barked, not addressing her questions. When she didn't comply with him immediately, he raised his gun pointing it at her head. Not having any choice, she did as she was told and held out her hands. Liam tucked the gun in the waistband of his pants and proceeded to handcuff her wrists together.

'No, DEFINITELY not good.' Kat tried to fight the rising panic she was feeling. She needed to stay calm and continue to look for a way out of this. Her brother had taught her all manner of self-defense; at least ONE of them had to work sooner or later! "Liam, please tell me what's going on! Where is Frank?"

"Well now, those handcuffs should do the trick." Liam swung Kat up over his shoulder and began to walk out on one of the I-beams that made up the skeleton of the building. "I've been paid to keep you from taking any more contracts in the city. You must have stepped on someone's dick, with those mannish ways you have. Always pretending to be tough and then flaunting yourself in front of everyone. Either way, somebody higher up the food chain wants you gone. Course, they left it up to me on HOW you'd go, so I think we'll have a little fun first." Kat trembled a little at those words. She HAD to get out of there now!

Liam set her down onto the beamand she heard a chain rattling above her head. He pushed her hands above her head and linked them to a hook, so that she was hanging from a chain attached to a beam above. Her feet were barely able to touch the lone beam below and her arms ached from the strain already. The dim bulbs hanging from above revealed an expression on Liam's face that chilled her to the bone.

"See? I called you down here and look at the way you're dressed! You dressed that way just to tease me! You're such a dick tease, and now, I'm gonna give you what you've been asking for all along." Liam leered at her.

"No, Liam! I...you interrupted me on a date...I didn't..." Kat tried to get ou but her mouth was so dry due to her fear. This COULDN'T be happening!

"So you'd show this..." His large hands reached over and ripped her dress off her shoulders, letting it fall down to the floors below them. "….. to another man?" Liam roared. The fact that he wasn't worried about anyone hearing him caused Kat to realize that there would be no help coming.

"You'd let another man KISS you?" Liam said angrily and he grabbed the back of her head, pulling her to him and beginning to kiss her roughly.

Kat tried to kick him but it was like kicking a rock. He was so big that no matter how many times she kicked him, he seemed impervious to it. Liam's only response was to bite her shoulder, hard. She cried out as she felt his teeth break the skin.

"I'm in charge now, not you, bitch. I'll do what I want to you and you'll like it." He spat out. He went back to roughly kissing her and she could feel her lips bruising as a result and tasted her own blood from his bite. Without warning, she felt a knife against her skin between her breasts and then her bra was cut in half, totallyexposing her. Kat gasped as she felt one of his hands close around her breast and then he squeezed it hard.

"I knew you wanted this!" Liam snickered. "You wanted me to touch you here... and here..." He said as he cupped her through her panties.

"No, Liam. Stop, please, stop! I never..." Kat whimpered as she saw him start to unbuckle his pants.

"Stop denying it bitch!" He slapped her so hard across the face that she felt the skin on her cheek split. "You know you want me to fuck you! You've wanted it for a long time and now I'm gonna give it to you!" He hit her across the face again. "I'm gonna fuck your brains out and then I'm gonna kill you and collect my money!"

Liam dropped his pants and was in the process of reaching for her when they both heard a hard, angry voice from the shadows. Quite possibly the most wonderful sound Kat had ever heard in her life. "Get your hands off her!"

Kat's head jerked up and her stomach leapt into her throat. 'John! Be careful!' She tried and failed to scream in enough time, everything happened so fast.

Liam spun around towards the voice and snarled. But in advancing to the voice and away from Kat, he made a critical mistake. Now that Kat was no longer in his line of fire, John didn't have any reason to hesitate. Three shots rang out in quick succession and Liam dropped like a stone, falling off the beam and landing with a thud three floors below. John rushed across the I-beam towards her.

"Kat!" John exclaimed, reaching up and unhooking her from the chain above. Kat's arms hurt so badly that she couldn't hold them up on her own and they dropped over John's shoulders.

"Oh, Kat, sweetheart! I'm sorry I didn't get here sooner! I tried calling..." John reached up and cupped her face in his hands. "Are you alright?" He looked at her eyes, trying to gauge how badly she had been traumatized.

Kat didn't trust herself to say anything right then so she just nodded. How he'd known that she'd needed him, she had no idea but Kat had never been so grateful to anyone in her entire life as she was to John. She looked up at him, feeling the sting of tears that had started to form. "Thank you." She whispered. "He...he was going to. He was. He was going to kill me, John."

"Oh sweetheart." He said softly. John's fingers delicately traced around the cuts, and what would surely be bruises tomorrow, on her face. Then he held her to him, trying with his actions, to show her that she was safe. He was here with her now and he wouldn't let anything happen to her.

Kat let herself be comforted by John for a minute or two but then she became conscious of the fact that she had nothing on except her panties. John felt her pull away. 'God! If he could shoot the bastard a thousand times more, it wouldn't be enough to make up for what he'd done to her!'

His eyes darkened with anger and Kat saw it. She was afraid that it was directed at her, at the fact that maybe he thought she was rejecting him after he had just saved her life. Nothing could be further from the truth! "John, I...I need to sit down for a minute."

He quickly softened his eyes and smiled down at Kat. He deliberately locked eyes with her and gently raised her arms and removed them from his neck. Then he took her hands in his. He used his considerable skills with a lock pick from his pocket to open the handcuffs around her wrists all without ever looking away from her eyes.

"Let's get you home." He said.

"No, John. I can't."

John stepped back. Had he presumed too much? He wouldn't blame her if she didn't want a man around for awhile but he felt an inescapable urge to protect her. "Kat, I..."

"John, I can't go anywhere yet. I have to call the police and I'm not...I'm not dressed." Kat dropped her head in embarrassment and tried to cover herself as best she could now that her hands were free.

John breathed a sigh of relief as he realized she wasn't telling him that she wanted _him_ to go. He chastised himself for not thinking of offering her some sort of cover before now but he had been more worried about her well-being than her modesty. He removed his shirt, hoping that all his scars wouldn't scare her too much. He wrapped his shirt around her shoulders and she smiled up at him, buttoning the shirt to cover her nakedness. She noted the myriad of scars on John's body and bit back a gasp. Now was not the time to ask him about them. John took her hand in his and walked her over to the elevator.

"It won't work." Kat said. "Liam had me break off...my...key..." She halted as John pried open a panel and connected two wires. The elevator lurched into movement and descended down to the ground. "Well, I guess you're a good guy to have around." She smiled at him.

John returned her smile. "I'm glad you think so."

"I need to call the police. Someone needs to do something about Liam."

"Ok, this location is part of the 8th precinct and it just so happens I know two of the homicide detectives there. Let me give you their number. You'll want to speak to them privately and explain that I was involved. I only ask that you not tell anyone else that I was here."

It seemed like a small enough thing to ask and she nodded her agreement. She wasn't sure why he wanted to avoid the police but she trusted him enough to know he must have a good reason. Retrieving her purse from where she'd dropped it when Liam grabbed her, she used her cell to call the number John gave her. They sat down together on a pile of materials to wait. John put his arm around Kat and pulled her close. Kat snuggled up to his warmth and tried to hold back the shaking she was beginning to feel taking over her body. John felt it and just held her tighter. As they heard the sirens approaching, John sincerely regretted the fact that he was going to have to leave her on her own to retell and relive the traumatic events of tonight.

"You'd better get going John, if you want to avoid the police."

John gave her hand a squeeze. "I'll be around if you really need me."

"I know." Kat answered and watched as John walked away and melted into the shadows by the gate.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Two hours later, Kat emerged from her trailer on the site dressed in a pair of jeans and a tee shirt and carrying John's shirt that he had given her.. Thankfully she'd always kept a complete change of clothes, including a bra and panties at the site just for accidents or emergencies. The police had taken pictures of her injuries and a Detective Carter had taken her statement. It was a bit easier to tell her story to a woman. The detective's eyes had flickered when she'd mentioned that John Reese had saved her. At that point, the Detective had closed her notepad and nodded. "I'll just interview your security guard if you don't mind." And Detective Carter walked over to where Frank was being treated for a concussion. He had been knocked out from behind by Liam.

The police were wrapping up their investigation and didn't need her there anymore. She'd just cleared the gate when she felt a presence next to her. "Hi." She said shyly.

"Hello, Kat." John spoke softly. "I'm surprised the Detective didn't take you home. I figured you would feel safer being driven home rather than walking."

Kat turned to face John. "Oh, Detective Carter offered to drive me home. She was very sweet, but I had a feeling... you'd be waiting for me. And right now, there isn't another person on the planet that I feel safer with."

John reached up and ran his knuckles lightly under her jaw bone. She didn't even flinch, a testament as to how much she really did trust him. He ground his teeth together in anger at what the dead man, Liam, had done to her. Once again, he wished that the man wasn't so dead, so that he could take more time to kill him again. He reached down and took her hand. "Are you sure you're ok to walk home? I could call you a cab."

She nodded at him, "I'm ok." And then handed him his shirt. He slipped it over his broad shoulders and she was almost sad that she'd returned it.

"Let's get you home then, OK?"

"Yeah." She whispered.

They both turned and walked out to the sidewalk that surrounded the site and headed towards Kat's home. There wasn't much in the way of conversation between them as they walked. John wanted to ask her how she was doing every few feet but he got the impression that an exorbitant amount of inquiries into her state of mind would just serve to piss her off and that was the last thing that he wanted to do. He also wanted to question her further as to her thoughts on why Liam might have attacked her. But that could wait as well.

When John had received the text with Kat's name and address along with her social; he'd almost lost it. He realized that this was the second time in a month that he'd received her number. He hadn't made the connection right away between the Katherine Greyson that Stanfield had been after - with this Kat; HIS Kat. Suddenly, he couldn't get out of the coffee shop fast enough. He'd left the Lincoln at his apartment and walked down to meet Kat earlier that evening, which he had regretted when he had to hail a cab to get to her construction site. He almost got sick thinking that he might have been too late if he hadn't met up with her this evening...he wouldn't have been able to get to her in time...to stop the bastard from... He ordered his train of thought to cease because he didn't want to deal with the possibility of failing someone else...not so soon after Harold.

He heard Kat whimper softly and felt her trying to pull her hand from his. He looked down and saw her brow furrowed in what looked like pain. He glanced down at their hands and he realized that he had, in his anger, been squeezing her hand and had. He immediately recoiled and dropped her hand. He'd been so caught up in his own thoughts that he hadn't even realized... He looked up at her. "God, Kat...I'm so sorry." He dropped his eyes and began walking again slowly away from her. He heard her hurry to catch up to him and start walking beside him again.

"Penny for your thoughts." She said softly. And then he felt her hand slip into his once more.

He looked down at her incredulously. How could she want to be near him, much less touch him after he'd just hurt her? She amazed him, that's for sure.

"I'm not sure you want to hear my thoughts, Kat."

"I kind of figured they weren't pleasant when you tried to go all ninja on my hand." She chuckled lightly and again, he was amazed at her resilience.

"I'm sorry Kat." He rubbed his thumb along hers as they walked.

"I know, John... I'm angry too."

'Hmm', he thought,...'resilient _and _insightful'.

John knew that they were almost to Kat's apartment and he wasn't looking forward to leaving her alone there. He knew that the threat had been taken care of tonight but until he found out exactly _why_ Liam had been trying to hurt her, and whether anyone was behind Liam's attempt, he wouldn't be able to relax. The last block that they walked wasn't in total silence. Kat talked a little about her brother Mike. He was currently serving overseas but was supposed to have a leave coming up in six months. She talked about her uncle too and how he had taken them both in when their parents had died and then how Mike had cared for her when he turned eighteen and could legally do so. He was happy to get to know some of the personal aspects of her life. It made him feel closer to her. He wished that he could do the same with her.

When they reached her apartment she didn't let go of his hand but insteadled him up the stairs to the front door. She dug out her keys from her small purse and let them both in. He followed her up the stairs and down the hall to her second floor apartment. He hadn't expected her to bring him upstairs but he certainly didn't question the fact that she did. Maybe she was as nervous to be alone as he was to leave her alone. She unlocked her door and then took his hand again without a word of explanation. As was his habit, his eyes immediately scanned the room when he walked in with her. A decent sized living room, a glass door that led out onto a small patio, just enough room for two chairs to comfortably sit side by side. A cozy little kitchen sat off to the left and the hall was at the back of the living room. Nice, clean place, he noticed. Not too big, but then a single woman with no husband or children didn't need anything more.

Kat let go of his hand and walked over to hang her purse on the hook. She turned to John. "Would you like something to drink?"

"Sure, anything's fine."

He watched her walk into the kitchen and grab two beers out of the refrigerator. She didn't even turn on the lights. She twisted off the caps and threw them in the trashcan and walked back over to him.

"I hope beer's ok, I don't really have the energy to mess with the mixed drinks tonight."

He reached over and took one of the bottles from her. "Kat, thank you. Beer's fine. I didn't come up expecting a fully stocked bar." He smiled a one-sided smile and then took a long pull from the bottle.

"What _did_ you expect?" She asked him simply and then stepped closer, almost closing the distance between them. He reached behind his back and slid his gun from the waistband of his pants and set it down on the little table sitting next to the door.

"I expected to take a look at these..." He lifted his hand and ran his finger close to the worst looking cut on her cheek, thenmoved to the one below that was dangerously close to her lip. "...and to get them cleaned up a bit."

She nodded and then turned away from him, crossing the living room to head down the hall. She paused and looked back at him. "First aid stuff's back here."

John took another pull from the beer and set it down on the table next to his gun then followed Kat down the hall. He stopped at the doorway where the light was shining out from the bathroom. He watched as Kat took out peroxide, a bottle of rubbing alcohol, some gauze, a pair of surgical scissors, a few Q-tips, a box of Band-aids and a tube of Neosporin. He raised his brows at her wide range of over the counter medical supplies.

"So, do you have surgical sutures in there too?" He joked.

"Yeah, do you think I need it?"

He was taken aback for a minute by her answer. 'Why in the world would she need sutures? Was she that used to being hurt, perhaps while on the job'?"Uhh.. I don't think so... Here let me take a look."

He stepped closer to her and turned her so that her back was against the sink and her wounds were in the brightest light. She hopped backwards up onto the sink next to the supplies so that she was a little higher up for him.

He cut a piece of the gauze and poured some peroxide on it and then began to clean around the largest cut on her cheek. She sat there without making a sound but he watched the muscles in her jaw jump from time to time. He knew it was probably uncomfortable for her but her eyes had taken on a glazed look as he worked. The next step wasn't going to be as easy for her though. The alcohol was going to burn like hell. He knew, he'd been through it before, more times than he cared to remember. He dabbed away the remaining peroxide bubbles and then poured the alcohol onto a fresh piece of gauze. The first time he touched her skin with it she jerked and her nostrils flared but that was the only indication that she felt anything that he was doing. When he was finished cleaning and assessing her face, he smiled.

"Good news, no stitches needed." He reached down and touched her knee. Her eyes flickered down to his hand and then quickly back up.

"What about this one?" She pulled at the neckline of her tee shirt. He leaned closer but saw nothing. When his blank look indicated that he saw nothing, she leaned back from him and yanked her shirt off over her head. He was completely floored by her action.

"Kat?" He questioned. Her long hair had fallen over her shoulders and she grabbed at it, twisting it around with her hands and pulingit over her right shoulder. She pointed at a spot about half way between her neck and her left shoulder. John felt himself blanch. There was an angry looking, oval-shaped, wound that looked like a... 'God, was that a bite mark?' He thought. He stepped closer to her and leaned down to look at it more closely. He gingerly touched around the sides and this time she did audibly cry out.

"Mother fucker." He mumbled under his breath.

"Yeah, he probably was." She spat out. His laugh was just a quick exhale of air through his nose.

He grabbed another piece of gauze and started doctoring the bite. He spent extra time cleaning that one out. Sure, it was a human bite but God only knew what kind of diseases that asshole had been carrying around. When he was done, he put some of the Neosporin on a square of gauze and Kat pointed to the open cabinet under the sink. He saw the medical tape and pulled out four pieces and laid the gauze on top of the bite and then applied the four pieces of tape.

He leaned back and surveyed his work and then looked back up at her face. She was looking up at him, studying him with an intense look in her eyes. He brought his hand up to her cheek.

"Kat? You OK?"

When she finally spoke, her voice had taken on a raspy quality and he could hear it quivering slightly. "He was going to kill me you know. He was going to use my body for his own disgusting, selfish, pleasure. Then he was going to kill me, and throw my body away like a piece of half eaten meat."

"Oh God, Kat..." John had an overwhelming urge to reach up and try to smooth away the frown that was wrinkling her beautiful face. Rather than trying to quell the urge, he allowed himself to do so. He moved closer to her, stepping between her legs. His hands cradled her face, careful not to touch the cuts as he smoothed the pads of his thumbs from the top of her nose out in an arc over her eyebrows. He repeated the motion several times, each arc he swept his thumbs higher across her forehead. "I'm so sorry I wasn't there. I won't make that mistake again."

"So... does that mean... are you leaving now?" She asked.

"Do you want me to leave?"

She shook her head no, and then he felt her hands come to rest on his waist where her fingers hooked into the belt loops on either side of his jeans. Her eyes never left his.

"Please don't."

"I'll stay as long as you need me to, Kat."

He continued stroking her face until she spoke again and then his fingers stopped.

"Will you stay as long as I want you to, John?"

He felt his breath catch in his throat as he tried to swallow. "Kat... I don't think..."

He was unable to finish his sentence because she slid her fingers from his waist and wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him roughly down to crush his mouth with hers. He was taken by surprise but it didn't take him long to respond to her. He felt her legs wrap around his waist and then her heels dug into the backs of his legs. John wrapped his arms around her back and pulled her up off the sink. He held her tightly against his chest as her mouth continued its sweet assault on his. Her teeth nipped and played with his lips and when she gasped for breath his tongue dove into her mouth where it was met with equal fervor from hers.

Something deep inside of him screamed that this wasn't right. He tried to ignore it but it wouldn't go away. He'd learned to listen to that little voice, warning bells, whatever you'd call it, long ago, he wasn't going to stop now. There was no way that he could allow this to go any further, not after what she'd been through earlier tonight. He tried to set her back down on the sink but she wouldn't relinquish her hold on either his neck or his waist. He pulled his head back from her so that he could try to reason with her.

"Kat..." He got out before her mouth was on his again. One of his hands slid up to cup the back of her head. He couldn't seem to stay focused on the task at hand...not with her soft, yet insistent tongue sneaking its way back through his lips.

He sighed internally and tried again to pull back from her. "Kat...stop... We."

'Better.' He thought. He was able to get out three words this time before she had him reeling again. He could tell that he was going to have to be a little more forceful with her if he was going to get through to her. He stepped closer to the sink and leaned forward so that she was now sitting on the counter and then reached around behind him to pull her legs from around his waist. She whimpered but it didn't really deter her progress. He reached up and grabbed her arms and unwound them from around his neck. Her hands flew to his chest and started grasping at the front, frantically trying to unbutton it. She was able to make her way halfway down before he grabbed her wrists with both of his hands and pushed them together. He pushed them back towards her chest to ease her away from him.

"Kat..."

"Please don't stop..."

"Kat, you can't...you don't want this right now." He let go of one of her wrists and placed his hand against her cheek. Her face transformed from soft and pliant to hard and angry.

"Don't..." She tried to pull away from his hand. "Don't tell me what I want."

"That's not what... I'm trying to do. I'm sorry... I." She'd misunderstood what he was trying to tell her.

She reached up with her free hand and wrapped it around his wrist. "Would you like to know what I DO want?" John started stroking her cheek with his thumb but Kat didn't give him a chance to answer her question. "What I _want_ is to have your lips on mine. I want you to kiss me for so long that I don't remember my name..." She pulled his hand downward as she continued speaking. "I want to feel your hands..." She continued pulling his hand down over her chest, pausing to inhale deeply when she stopped his hand over her breast. "...running all over my body." She closed her eyes and he had to bite back a groan as his fingers brushed her taut nipple when she pulled his hand further down over her stomach. Before she was able to pull his hand between her legs he pulled it to a stop. Her eyes snapped open and turned up to his. "What I DON'T want to feel, is that bastard's lips bruising mine, or his knife slicing open my bra, or his hand..." She pulled his hand roughly between her legs. "...here." She cocked a brow up at him, her forehead once again wrinkling into a harsh frown. "Would you like to know what else I DON'T want to feel John?" Again, she didn't leave him enough time to respond, but he had a feeling that she wasn't necessarily wanting a response. "His teeth, John...pressing down so hard into my skin that it breaks and bleeds, all while I'm trying to convince him that I didn't dress like I did just to tease him."

John watched as she fought valiantly to keep from crying and all he wanted to do was wrap her in his arms and make her feel safe, make her forget... But he knew that she needed to get this out so he stood there quietly for her and just listened until he knew that she was ready for him to speak.

"I didn't... I don't want those to be my last thoughts today..." She was breathing heavily and her face was flushed in her anger. She pulled his hand from between her legs and brought it up to rest on her cheek. Then she pulled her other hand free from his grasp. She grabbed onto his hips and pulled him closer to her so that he was nestled tighter between her legs. "Please John, I want your lips on mine. I want to feel your hands on me... everywhere... I want to feel your teeth brush against my skin because I know you won't break it like some kind of rabid dog." She swallowed hard as the tears that had been pooling in both eyes spilled over to run down one side of her face, while the other ran only as far as his fingers. "What I want..." Her voice broke and then she continued in a much softer voice. "What I want; is to forget." She went to grab his other hand that had come to rest benignly on the counter next to her but he pulled it back before she reached it. The tortured look in her eyes grabbed onto his heart and squeezed with the force of a thousand fingers. He slowly and deliberately raised his hand to rest firmly against her other cheek, taking care to not touch the cuts there.

"Kat...you don't have to _make_ me touch you. I already want to... so bad...it hurts. I hope you know that." His thumbs started caressing her face; gently wiping away the tears. He leaned down and touched his lips to her forehead and then leaned back. "But...this isn't how it should be...not our first time." He leaned forward again and lightly pressed his lips to hers then leaned back again.

A fresh set of tears spilled down her cheeks onto his fingers. "Oh God..." She started. That same stricken look returned to her face.

"What...what's wrong, Kat?"

She tried to lower her head but his hands held it up. Kat grabbed onto his wrists and tried to pull them away. "No, don't... don't look at me."

He whispered. "Please, tell me what's wrong."

"You must think I'm completely out of my mind...coming on to you like that...after I was almost...Oh God...Only a whore would... Oh God!" She wailed.

"No..." He wrapped his long arms around her and pulled her against his chest. "No, no, no... I don't think that Kat; not at all.

Her sobs wracked her body as she tried to push him away. "How could you NOT think that."

He raised his voice to make sure that she heard him over her crying and struggling. "Because, I'm not HIM!" He wasn't sure if it was his words or the tone of voice, but Kat froze. The only thing that moved was the rise and fall of her chest. He prayed to God that he hadn't frightened her to the point of sending her into shock. He held her for another minute before he leaned back and looked down at her. Her head fell forward, her hair hung down on either side of her face essentially hiding her from him. He reached out and swept both sides back behind her shoulders where he twisted it so that it wouldn't fall forward again.

He took a chance and spoke very softly to her. "Kat?"

She didn't raise her head, she just shook it slowly back and forth. "Oh John... I'm so...so very sorry."

"Hey... don't apologize. You have nothing to be sorry for."

"Yes I do." She slowly looked up at him. Her eyes were bloodshot and puffy, her cheeks were stained from the tracks of her tears, her nose and her cheeks were dark pink, and he still thought she was so achingly beautiful. He had no idea how he was going to restrain himself tonight; if she still wanted him to stay with her. If he had to sleep on the floor to keep himself under control, then he would.

"I do... You saved my life. You could have taken advantage of the situation at any time and you didn't... You've been nothing but a gentleman and I've been nothing but..."

"A trusting, traumatized and scared woman, with every right to... lose it a little."

She sniffed and wiped at her face with short jerky movements. 'Yeah...and come on to the guy that put his own life on the line to save me, then yell at him when he doesn't reciprocate? Yeah, I'd say I lost it...I lost it a lot, John."

"Oh Kat...make no mistake... I wanted, I want to reciprocate. I want YOU...more than you know. Please understand. I don't do..." He waved his hand between the two of them. "...this...I don't have one night stands...and especially not... I want... this to go further...but not tonight."

He watched as a single tear rolled down her face. "Please don't leave tonight. You can have my bed, I'll sleep on the couch...just... don't leave."

"I would have slept outside on your doorstep, Kat."

"Oh..." She gasped. She leaned forward and wrapped her arms around him. He held her close until she leaned back and looked up at him. "Can you... " She dropped her eyes.

"What? Look at me please, Kat."

She slowly looked up at him through hooded eyes. Her cheeks that had finally cooled a minute ago were now flaming red again. "I want you...to kiss me." She inhaled sharply before he could respond and continued. "I...please...I'm not asking for anything else tonight...I..." He cut her off by lowering his mouth to hers. As he slowly pressed his lips against hers, she made the sweetest little sound. He continued kissing her like that for several minutes before he parted her lips with his and sucked her lower lip between his. Her hands left his body and grabbed onto the edge of the sink. He pulled back from her immediately, worried that he'd gone too far.

"What's the matter...are you ok?"

"Well..yes... why did you stop?" He searched her face, taking in her lips that had turned a rosy pink from his own lips, and then he saw her dilated pupils. Maybe he'd misunderstood... He glanced down at her hands holding the edge of the counter in a death grip. Her eyes followed his.

"Oh...um..." She grinned sheepishly up at him. "If I didn't get my hands off you, I was going to start ripping your clothes off.

He closed his eyes and felt the grin lift one side of his mouth. "It's getting late, Kat. Are you going to...take a shower...before bed?"

She grinned back at him before answering. "Actually, I'd like to take a bath...and I'm sorry to say that you're not invited...this time."

He pulled her off the counter into his arms and kissed her fully on her smart little mouth and then quickly set her back on her feet. She swayed against him as her eyes blinked open.

"Well then, I look forward to next time." He said with a wicked smile and then turned and left the bathroom. He heard her sigh forcefully and when he turned around and sat down on the living room couch, he saw her peek around the doorway at him... she winked and then quickly disappeared back into the bathroom. He heard the water start and then he saw her dart across the hall into where he assumed her bedroom was and then back into the bathroom with a change of clothes. She was in there for about forty-five minutes before he heard the tell-tale sign of the water draining from the tub. When she emerged she looked more like the woman that he'd met earlier that night.

"I had some clean clothes in there that should fit you...if you'd like to take a shower." She paused at the look on his face. "No...they're not an ex-boyfriend's, they're my brother's. He's not quite as tall as you but they'll do if you want to get cleaned up."

"I think I may do that, thank you." John rose from the couch and walked over to her. He wrapped his arms around her in a quick hug and kissed her forehead before he headed to the bathroom.

When he emerged from the bathroom, the steam poured out in waves behind him. He looked down the hall towards the living room but didn't see Kat on the couch. He glanced into the room across the hall where a small lamp cast a warm glow that exited in a rectangular block of light out into the hall. He walked in and Kat was laying on the bed wrapped in the blankets. He almost turned around and headed to the couch but something drew him to her. He leaned over her and gently swept a few strands of hair off of her face. She stirred as he withdrew his hand. He felt her hand on his as he turned to go.

"Stay...please? There's plenty of room." She looked up at him imploringly. "I promise to be on my best behavior."

He grinned down at her. God help him, he was not able to refuse her. He sat down on the edge of the bed and slid his long legs under the sheet and blankets. He leaned over and gave her a chaste kiss on her forehead. Then he slid his left arm under her back and wrapped his right arm over her stomach and pulled her towards him as he laid down. Her back was resting firmly against his chest, his arms still wrapped securely around her. He felt her sigh and then her hands wrapped around his as she whispered. "Thank you, John."

"You're welcome, Kat. Good Night."

"Good Night, John."

He settled in against her warm body and within minutes...against all odds, he was asleep.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Kat woke slowly and tried to shield her eyes from the sun pouring in through the bedroom window. When she couldn't seem to move her arm, she had a moment of sheer panic as her mind unwillingly returned to last night's events. For a split second, she imagined she was back at the site, her hands chained above her head. In the next instant, she realized that the reason she wasn't able to move her arm was because it was pinned up against John's warm body lying next to her. A smile lit up her face as she realized how happy she was to be waking up beside him. When she had gone to sleep, she hadn't been entirely certain that he would still be there when she woke up.. She lay there and studied his face. He was an incredibly handsome man, the line of his high cheekbones captivated her eyes and naturally drew them to his long, straight nose and from there, her eyes were drawn to his lips. She sighed with pleasure remembering how those lips were able to kiss her and literally take her breath away in seconds or how when they formed a smile, her stomach did flip-flops. As if he could read her mind, his lips drew up into a smile and a second later he opened his eyes.

"Good morning beautiful, enjoying yourself?" He asked as he continued to smile at her.

"Mmmm, it IS a good morning and yes, I am enjoying myself, very much so." Kat reached over and ran her fingers over the little bit of stubble she could see growing around that delicious mouth and along those cheeks. John reached up and covered her hand with his and brought it to his mouth. He kissed the palm of her hand and then those soft lips of his traced a path down to her wrist. Her pulse quickened as his tongue licked at the smooth skin there and he lightly nipped her eliciting a soft gasp from her.

She felt his smile against her wrist and then he looked up from her hand but he didn't let go of her. She whispered to him, "Oh, so you think that's funny? Well, I bet this is too." She leaned closer to him and looked him in the eyes, pausing for just a second over his mouth. He parted his lips anticipating her kiss, but instead her tongue darted out and she licked his jaw, the stubble rasping on her skin and tongue. For a brief second she let herself imagine what that sensation might feel like on other parts of her body before she once again licked his jaw, this time continuing on up to his earlobe. He let out his own gasp when she drew his earlobe into her mouth, sucking gently and then slowly pulling her mouth away, drawing the earlobe with it for a second.

"Hm, so it's going to be like that is it? Well, I can play that game too..." He sat up and gently pushed her onto her back and leaned his head down towards her and traced a path with his tongue from her earlobe, down her neck, to her shoulder and then followed along her neck over to the incredibly sensitive spot on her neck where it joined with her collarbone. "And Kat..."

"Hmm?" She murmured, too caught up in the feelings his tongue was producing to be able to say much of anything else.

"...I ALWAYS win." He whispered before his lips latched onto her neck and he drew in a little and then nipped her.

"Oh!" she gasped. He did it again and she couldn't help but let out a little moan as shivers ran from the base of her skull and down her spine.

John chuckled a little at her reaction and she smiled too as he grasped her shoulders and rolled her closer to his body.

"Well John, I'm..." Kat reached over and grasped the bottom of his T-shirt, "...used to..." She tugged the shirt up towards his head and he lifted his shoulders, letting her take it off of him. "...getting whatever..." She lowered her head to his bare chest and her tongue licked and nipped her way from his collarbone, down his chest and paused for just a split second over a nipple..."I want". And she drew his nipple into her mouth accompanied by his gasp. She licked it repeatedly and then her hand slowly traced its way downwards from where it was resting on his chest. She looked up from his nipple and gave him her best seductive smile and asked, "Do you think you are UP for the challenge John?"

John growled and just before her hand reached his obviously interested lower half, he flipped her over on her back, covering her body with his. He started kissing her, capturing her gasp in his mouth as he pressed his hard arousal against her. He did it again and she moaned, pushing herself up into him. Suddenly they both heard a phone ring. John sighed heavily and then moved off her and she whimpered at the loss of his body pressed against hers.

"Damn! I'm so sorry sweetheart but I have to take this. It's probably my work calling." As soon as he'd retrieved his phone from his pants pocket on the chair next to the bed, he was back next to her, cupping her face and rubbing her lips with his thumb. He listened for a minute and then disconnected the call.

"Dare I hope they were calling and telling you that they don't need you today?" Kat asked.

"I wish to God that was the case, Kat! I have to go to work today and I don't know when I'll be done." John ran his thumb across her lips one more time before he got up off the bed and grabbed his clothes.

Kat pouted but then smiled at him and sat up in bed, hugging her legs as she watched John getting dressed. "Do you have time for breakfast?"

"No, I'm afraid not." He said, tugging the T-shirt over his head. "The sooner I go, the sooner I'll be done." He sat back down on the bed and took her hand. "Kat, I need you to promise me something."

"Um, sure. What is it?" She was surprised at his suddenly serious tone.

"I need you to stay here until I can figure out why Liam attacked you. I won't be able to focus at work if I think you might possibly be in danger. In fact, I'm tempted to bring you to my place in case anyone comes looking for you here."

Kat sat up at that last remark. "Oh no, John. I'm sure that won't be necessary and I wouldn't be comfortable with that anyway." She thought she saw a fleeting look of hurt and took his face in his hands. "Oh John, despite what you might have seen last night, I'm a very independent woman. I couldn't stay over at your place when we just met two days ago. This is already moving so fast as it is! It's just, I've never..." Kat couldn't quite bring herself to say it aloud; not yet anyway.

"You don't have to explain, Kat. You don't owe me anything." John told her.

That got Kat a little angry and a bit concerned. "Of course I do! We both owe each other the truth. At least I thought we did, I've always believed in honesty in a relationship..." Was he saying that he didn't think that they were starting something here? Something more lasting than a one night stand? Had he just said what he did last night because he thought that was what she wanted to hear? Kat had never been one to beat about the bush and she didn't see any reason to start now. She valued honesty in herself and others so she decided to ask John where he stood on this.

"John, I need an honest answer from you. I know my timing is off with this but, are you still... are you still interested in more than a one night stand?"

John flinched inwardly every time she mentioned honesty. He would be able to give Kat many things; he could buy her whatever she wanted (he never spent all the money Harold paid him anyway), he could give her his body, he could even see himself giving her his heart. But the one thing he would be unable to give her would be the truth. Would that be fair to her? To start a relationship, knowing he'd have to lie to her from the start?

He looked at Kat, sitting there anxiously awaiting an answer from him and God forgive him, he just couldn't bring himself to tell her what he SHOULD have, what she deserved to hear. He was already in this too deep. "Yes Kat, I want more and I want it with you."

Her answering smile struck right at his heart and he almost blurted out the entire truth about his past, about the Machine, about how he repeatedly failed the ones who relied on him. Instead, he stood up and said, "Kat, I have to go. Please call me if you need me." He leaned down and kissed her passionately, wishing they could go back to a few minutes ago, before the Machine had called and before he'd realized that the one thing she most deserved from him, he'd be unable to give her.

"John," Kat said when they broke off the kiss, "please come by whenever you are done with work. I don't care what time it is."

He nodded. "It might not be until tomorrow or possibly the next day Kat." He warned her. He had no idea what helping this latest number might entail.

"I don't care. I'd like to see you again, John. Whenever you can make it." Kat rose from the bed and walked out into the living room after him. "I know how things can get at work. Promise me you'll eat something though if you don't have time for me to make you breakfast."

"Only if you remember your promise and stay put." John reminded her as he picked up his gun and tucked it in the waistband of his pants at the small of his back.

She rolled her eyes and said, "I will."

John smiled back at her, rolled his eyes with exaggeration and said, "Then I will too."

Kat laughed and threw her arms around him and kissed him one last time. "Thank you again for saving me, John." She whispered in his ear.

He gave her a hug and another quick kiss before opening the door. "You're welcome, Kat." And then he was gone.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kat leaned against the closed door and surveyed her apartment. Without John there, it seemed empty already. She sighed and pushed herself off the door. Might as well make breakfast if she was already up this early. She grabbed her cell from the table and brought it in the kitchen with her as she checked her messages.

As Kat scrambled some eggs and made coffee, she began to relive the events of last night in her mind. Before she knew it, there were tears mixing in with the eggs. She turned off the burner, backed up a step and slid down the counter at her back until she was sitting on the floor with her knees drawn up. The pain and fear were even worse this morning than last night when she had John there and the full impact of what had happened had yet to set in.  
Huge racking sobs took over as she realized just how close she had come to being raped and murdered.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

John was just leaving his apartment when he heard the crying through his earbud. He'd cloned her phone last night before he'd left her in Carter's hands. Now, he was hearing Kat's sobs as she slowly lost it. He'd known it would inevitably happen as the reality of what had happened to her sunk in, but he'd been hoping he'd be there when it did. Listening to her crying, his heart broke. When it went on for several minutes, he almost turned around and went back to her apartment but then he heard her say, "Katherine Greyson, get it together girl! You're fine, thanks to John. Now get up and get moving." He sighed with relief as the crying stopped and she went back to banging pots and pans.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kat pulled herself together and finished making breakfast. After she was done eating, she jumped in the shower to wash away the last of the tears. While she was in there, Kat began thinking about who she would get to replace that asshole Liam. There were plenty of men capable of doing the job, Kat was always careful when hiring people and only hired those that she deemed the best. It was just a matter of deciding which of her men would be able to be a good enough leader and get the maximum efficiency out of his men.

As Kat went through her morning routine, her thoughts gradually turned from work to the time she had spent with John. 'Damn! If only his work hadn't called him in...and just when things were getting interesting!' She thought and then she was shocked at herself. 'What is going on with me? Why am I ready and willing to sleep with John after knowing him for so short a time? I mean besides the obvious hotness of the man.' Kat mulled this over and over in her mind. She just didn't normally do this sort of thing and yet, with John, it just felt _natural_...it felt _right_. Was it because he'd saved her? 'No' She answered her own question. **'**I felt this way about him before that; in the coffee shop and all day yesterday.' She came to the conclusion that it must have something to do with his willingness to protect others. He had been helping that adorable little boy, Jim, when she'd met him, at great personal risk to himself and then, without knowing much about her, he had come to her rescue as well. To be willing to put your life on the line for others took such an incredible amount of selflessness. And yet, while he was protecting others, Kat felt as is perhaps John himself needed protection. Oh, not physical protection. He was obviously more than capable. Rather, it was the way he seemed to act around her, the way he seemed to always be wanting to touch her, no matter what they were doing. It was as if he was reassuring himself that she was there... 'Gah! I must be reading too much into things! How could a man as handsome and self-assured as John need that?' She filed those thoughts away to reassess at a later time.

Kat pulled several files out of a drawer and sat down at the table to work. If she was going to be cooped up here on this beautiful Sunday, she might as well get some paperwork done. Kat immersed herself in the details of running her company for several hours, only taking a quick break for lunch and then getting right back into it afterwards. By 4pm, Kat had confirmed that she was still quite well in the black and that all the materials for her upcoming projects had been ordered and all her contracts were in good order.

Pushing back from the table, Kat checked her cell. No messages from John and no texts. She attempted to quell the disappointment that threatened to quickly overwhelm her due to the lack of contact from him. She knew he was working...and if it was anything like the job he was on when she met him... Kat forced that thought down as well, knowing that her fear for his safety would just overtake her thoughts and make it impossible to get anything else accomplished today. She got up to go into the kitchen to find something to cook for dinner only to find her refrigerator almost empty. Sunday was her normal shopping day. Upon opening the cupboards and finding only a few boxes of mac and cheese and some spaghetti but no sauce, she concluded that she had no choice, she was going to have to go out and get some ingredients for dinner. "I'm sorry John," she said aloud, "but this girl's gotta eat. I DID keep my promise most of the day." Kat figured she could go and be back before John could even possibly know she'd gone.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

John tailed his person of interest for the better part of the day, watching the woman as she went to the salon, went shopping, walked her dog...and met with someone at a little cafe and hired him to kill her husband. All the while, John would tune in every twenty minutes or so to Kat's phone, just to assure himself that she was ok and wasn't having any more emotional breakdowns after the trauma she'd suffered. He smiled frequently, listening to her talk to herself as she worked on the day to day business for her company. Her little comments gave him further insight into the type of woman she was. She definitely cared for her employees, she took her responsibilities very seriously, she HATED math and she was a great planner and organizer. She also seemed to know most of her employees' families as well and seemed to go out of her way to set things up so that not only her employees were taken care of, but their families too. After all, who would make decisions about which worker should be at which site based on how long that person would need to be on the bus or subway? That extra care and concern for the people who worked for her, spoke volumes on how invested Kat was in making the lives of the people around her better.

John was in the process of following the hired hitman when Kat made her announcement that she would be leaving her apartment. John felt a wave of fear hit him as he imagined something happening to Kat while he wasn't there. Damn! Her timing couldn't have been worse! He had to stay on the hitman since he didn't know when the hit was going to go down. So he did the only thing he could, he quickly switched over the line and dialed...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kat was nervous at first. She had her Sig in a holster on her belt and she didn't bother to conceal it today. Eventually though, when nothing out of the ordinary happened, she began to relax. She had no idea why she was worried, Liam was dead thanks to John. He was just over-reacting. She had no sooner come to that conclusion than she felt a presence at her elbow which she turned to address.

"Hello Detective Carter. What are you doing in this neck of the woods?"

"Well, Ms. Greyson it seems I've been demoted from homicide detective to bodyguard."

"What?" Kat asked, puzzled. "And call me Kat...wait...did John send you? Tell me he didn't!"

Detective Carter just gave her a look.

"Oh my God! Is he kidding? How did he even know I left the apartment? This is ridiculous!" Kat was a bit taken aback that John would call a cop to come be her personalbodyguard, as if the woman didn't have anything else to do with her time here in the crime capital!

"Look, I appreciate that you came down here Detective, but as you can see I'm fine and I'm sure you are just as happy about being here as I am withhaving a bodyguard. Please feel free to go back to your job. I can protect myself if needed." And Kat patted her gun on her hip.

The detective smiled as she looked at Kat with her hand on her gun. "That's an impressive piece. Ever shoot a Glock?"

"A few times, but I prefer the Sig because there's less recoil. I give you credit for being able to put up with it. And really Detective. I don't need a babysitter."

"It's Joss, Kat. Let's just say that I'd rather stick around than have to explain to John why I didn't. He can be very...persuasive."

Kat laughed. "He can be, can't he? Joss, how the heck did he know I was out?" Kat moved onto the limes and chose two.

Joss just shook her head. "I haven't a clue how he knows the things he knows. I've tried several times to pin him down but... You don't want to pick that one." Joss said as Kat picked up a cantaloupe. "It'll take too long to ripen. Scratch the top here. If it smells, it's close to being ripe."

"Thanks!" Kat said, taking the one she suggested. "So how do you know John?"

Joss had to be careful here, John had been rather adamant about not revealing too much about what he did for a living to Kat. She had no idea why, but when it came to John, she'd learned it was sometimes in her best interest not to ask. Still she was curious as to this latest woman that John was protecting. Joss never knew how he picked the people he chose to protect. Perhaps she might find out in talking with this woman, Kat.

"Well once upon a time, he saved my life as well. One of the men I had been trying to take down took it upon himself to try and take me down first. John had been following me and shot the man sent to kill me."

"He was following you? Like a stalker?" Kat stopped dead in the middle of the bakery aisle. Kat's eyes widened at the thought of John turning into a stalker. 'Oh please God, not the one man she had started falling for'!

Joss laughed but didn't miss the look of serious concern that Kat gave her. "No, not like that. Although now that you mention it, John can certainly come across that way. He sneaks up behind you without your even knowing he was there."

Kat sighed with obvious relief and Joss wondered what was going on here. "So," she continued, "was that the first time you met John, when he saved you from that guy, Liam?"

"No." Kat told her, reaching for some fresh French bread. "I was walking home one night when I saw this guy trying to save this adorable little boy Jimmy..."

"Wait, was the kid around 4 years old? Dark hair and dressed in a blue T-shirt?" Joss interrupted her.

"Um, yes, that's sounds like Jimmy. Why?"

"That son of a bitch!" Joss exclaimed, shaking her head. "Yeah, I worked with John on that one. Jim had been kidnapped and John had somehow found out about it and was already after the guys that took him before I could call him that night." Joss exclaimed, shaking her head.

"Wait, Joss...that was you that called John that night?... He'd said that was his boss calling him in."

"His boss? Yeah right. Hardly." Joss chuckled. "I called him to see if he knew anything about the shooting in that area. He'd said that he was there. I asked him about Jim and he said he had him, so I told him to get his ass down to the precinct because Jim's father was worried sick."

"Well, I'm just glad Jimmy was reunited with his family. The whole thing must have been very traumatic for him."

"What whole thing?" Joss asked. Her instincts were right, there WAS more to this story.

"Well, when I came upon John, someone was sneaking up on him from behind, so I...shot him?" Kat's voice rose and hesitated on the last two words as she realized that she was telling a cop that she had shot someone and not reported it.

Joss raised an eyebrow. "I didn't just hear that. I KNEW he was involved somehow in that shooting!" She shook her head and chuckled."So, let me guess, there was some kind of shootout involving John and some of these guys, John saved the boy and the bad guys were killed."

"Well we were both kind of involved with that, but yes I suppose in a nut shell, that's what happened." Kat reached over and grabbed some chicken breasts as they walked by the meat counter.

"So then the second time you saw John, he showed up to help you at your construction site last night, huh?" Joss probed.

"Well, not exactly... he kind of asked me out on a date afterwards, after we saved Jimmy you know..."

It was Joss's turn to stop dead in the middle of the store. "HE DID WHAT?"

Kat looked at Joss. She didn't know her well enough to interpret her reaction. "He asked me on a date. We met at a coffee shop and were enjoying...the..band..." Kat blushed and continued in a rush. "And then Liam called me and told me that there had been a break-in down at my site and that the police wouldn't take a statement from him so I had to leave. John and I exchanged numbers and well...the next time I saw him was right before he shot Liam."

Joss couldn't believe her ears. John was actually interested in this woman, Kat! She supposed he was entitled to some human contact, he was a man after all, but she was just surprised that he would want to start that kind of relationship,after what happened with Jessica... It made her wonder what John was thinking, bringing a woman...hell, anyone for that matter into his life with the kind of work that he did. It would put that person at risk every damn day.

They walked through the last few aisles, Kat picking up a few items, both of them involved with their own thoughts. Kat once more checked her phone. Finally there was a text from John! It read, _Just accept her help. We'll talk about your promise when I'm done here._

'Crap!' Kat thought. 'He's probably all kinds of mad. But really, sending Joss here to look after her like she was some kind of helpless female!' Kat was tempted to text him back and give him a piece of her mind, but she didn't want to distract him so she settled for giving her phone a raspberry instead.

Joss smiled and said, "Let me guess, John."

Kat rolled her eyes. "You got it in one. Well Detective, fancy a home cooked meal?"

"As it so happens, my son is staying with his grandmother tonight, so sure...as long as you promise me you can cook better than I can!" Joss laughed.

The rest of the night went by quickly for Kat. She and Joss had several glasses of wine over dinner, which Joss had declared was head and shoulders above what she could have possibly cooked. Joss talked to her about her son Taylor and Kat told her about her brother and taking over the company from her uncle. Both women were a bit amazed at the amount they had in common as they were discussing what it was like to work in a field that was primarily dominated by men. Kat very much enjoyed hearing about Joss's days in the police academy and the woman's warmth and humor had Kat considering the idea of introducing the detective to her brother when he was done with his tour in a few months.

By ten o'clock, Joss had gone and there was still no sign of John. Kat sighed and decided that she wasn't going to wait up any later and that it was time to go to bed. She needed to be up early tomorrow to go in and explain to her crew what had happened to Liam. Kat washed up in the bathroom and put on a silk cami top and shorts and climbed into bed. She rolled over onto her side and fell asleep remembering how just last night, the bed had not felt so big and empty.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kat opened her eyes and looked at the clock...four AM! She sighed and rolled over, just about to close her eyes when it registered in her mind that there was a person sitting in the chair next to her bed. She opened her mouth to scream but a hand suddenly covered her mouth.

"Shh...Kat, it's John. I didn't want to wake you...so I let myself in and slept in the chair." He removed his hand, sure now that she wouldn't scream and wake the neighbors.

"John!" Kat exclaimed, sitting up quickly. "I told you I didn't mind what time it was but... how the hell did you get in here? You scared me half to death!"

"I'm sorry Kat. Really. And I came in through the front door, just like everyone else." John moved closer to her on the bed. "I missed you all day." He whispered. The look in his eyes purely lascivious as he leaned in closer towards her.

"Me too. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised at anything you do but please, give me some warning next time you plan on coming over in the middle of the night, while I'm sleeping." Kat closed the distance between them and suddenly their lips met and nothing else mattered.

The feel of Kat's soft lips on his drove John crazy, he couldn't seem to get enough of her. Even breathing seemed to come secondary to his desire to taste the sweetness of her mouth. His arms reached out and he pulled her body up against his. Kat thrust her tongue in his mouth and he couldn't help but groan as his entire body was focused on this woman and what she was doing to him. They both broke off the kiss at the same time, sucking in air, but he was the quickest to recover. His lips found that little spot on her neck that he'd discovered last time and she tilted her head so that he would have better access. As he sucked and nipped her neck, she let out a soft moan that he thought was the sexiest sound he'd ever heard. His hands meanwhile traveled down her neck, past her collarbone to the swell of her breasts. He waited for a second, to see if she would stop him, to see if perhaps he was going too fast for her, but she just pushed herself forward, so that he was cupping her large, full breasts in his hands. He rubbed the nipples with the pad of his thumbs and was rewarded with a moan of pleasure from Kat. The sound pushed him over the edge and he grasped her behind her back and quickly lowered her down to the bed. Kat grasped his arms and he jumped a little as her hand grabbed his upper arm. He lowered his lips to hers, hoping she hadn't noticed. But as she pulled back from him, he knew it was a fruitless hope.

"What's wrong, John?" Kat reached over and switched on the light. "What..." She gasped when she pulled his suit jacket away from his arm.

"It's nothing." He tried to reassure her. "I just wasn't quick enough."

"The hell it's nothing John, you're still bleeding through your shirt for God's sakes! Come on, tonight it's your turn for a little doctoring."

John got up off the bed and followed her into the bathroom. He watched as she removed the same medical supplies that he had used on her just last night. She turned to him expectantly.

"I can't work through your shirt John." She reminded him. He sighed. He hadn't wanted her to get a close look at how many scars he had, at least not yet. Not only was he a bit self-conscious, but he knew that they would inevitably cause her to ask questions that he wasn't prepared to answer and didn't want to lie to her about. However he didn't seem to have a choice so he steeled himself for her reaction and started unbuttoning his shirt.

She watched with an intense look as he shook the shirt off himself and she gave him a shy smile before turning her attention to the knife wound on his arm. She prodded the edges of the wound and hissed as more blood appeared.

"Well it appears you aren't going to be as lucky John, this is going to need stitches."

He just nodded and waited for the questions to begin. But they never came, instead, Kat cleaned the wound with gentle fingers and started threading the suture needle. "Relax your arm as best you can, here, you can rest it on my other shoulder while I stitch this."

"Kat honey, if I put my hands on you now, they'll be anything but relaxed. I'll keep still I promise." He told her. She looked so good with that low cut top on and those shorts that showed off her long legs perfectly. His hand twitched as he imagined cupping that bottom and pulling her up against his body, those soft curves meeting his..."

"JOHN! You said you'd stay still!" Kat berated him as she was about to make her first stitch.

"Sorry." He deliberately looked at the ceiling in order to keep his mind and body calm. He felt the prick of the needle and the pull of the thread, but it was nothing compared to the majority of the pain he'd experienced throughout his career with the Army and then the CIA.

Ten minutes later, Kat stepped back and pronounced that she was done. He looked down and saw twelve small, neat sutures. "Thank you. That was nicely done." He told her, leaning over to give her a quick kiss on the cheek as she was cleaning up the supplies. Apparently though Kat had other ideas because she turned her face so that it was her mouth he connected with instead. Once again, those soft lips drove him crazy as they kissed. He continued to be amazed at how passionate Kat was. It was as if she couldn't get enough of him, as if she wanted to be as close as possible to every part of his body. She carefully wrapped her arms around his bare chest as they continued to kiss, both of them taking turns licking and sucking on the others' lips. The feel of her soft hands wrapping around his torso was incredible and he quickly turned her and lifted her up onto a sitting position on the vanity. From there, she was able to wrap those long legs around him as he stood pressed up against her. He pulled her bottom closer towards him so that she would feel the evidence of just how much he wanted her at that moment. When his erection pressed against the junction of her thighs, he heard Kat moan again.

John reached over and lowered first one strap and then the other of her top and the silk slid down her chest, revealing her breasts. He sucked in his breath as he looked at her  
beautiful body for a moment before he leaned over and cupped a breast intent on tasting her there too. Without warning, he heard his phone ring and felt it vibrate against his leg.

"Oh God, not again!" Kat cursed. John pulled his head back and sucked in deep breaths as he tried to calm the riotous feelings running rampant through his body.

Kat gave him a dark look and pulled her top back up. "John, so help me, the next time you start something, you better damn well be able to finish it!" She jumped off the vanity and walked in the direction of the living room without a second glance at him.

As he answered the phone, he couldn't help but feel that she was justified in her frustration. Hell, he wanted to bite the head off whoever it was that was calling.

Five minutes later, John came out of Kat's bedroom shrugging on his suit jacket. "Kat, I'm so sorry but I..."

"Yeah, you have to go." She interrupted him. "I figured. I made you up something to eat and put some antibiotic ointment in there as well. Make sure you keep that wound clean and don't pull my stitches or I'll be even more mad at you." Kat frowned at him but she couldn't stay mad for long. He pulled her into his arms once more and kissed her, both of them pulling away too soon. It hadn't taken much to stoke the flames again and Kat at least couldn't take much more frustration at this point. "The next time you walk through my door, it better be without that damn phone. Or else..."

John smiled at her and gave her one more quick peck before he opened the door.

"Oh and I WILL be going to work today WITHOUT a personal bodyguard!" She yelled as he was shutting the door.

"We'll see!" She heard him say as the door softly closed behind him.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Kat stuck her tongue out at the closed door, realizing how immature she must have looked at that moment, but she felt like she was being treated like a child. She tamped down the unbidden thought that snuck its way into her head; that maybe John had her best interests at heart. 'Whatever'! She thought. 'He's just being overprotective because of my being attacked.' Again, she pushed back the thought that John had a point...she hadn't even told him yet about what Liam had said regarding someone hiring him to take care of her. Damn, John would have been impossible if he'd known that little tidbit of information!

She'd tell him eventually...she had to…she needed to. Maybe after he got back from whatever dangerous job his work had called him away to do today. She went to make herself a cup of coffee to take on the road with her out to the site then she walked back to her room to get dressed. She pulled out a pair of jeans and a black tee shirt. Typically she'd throw on some older, torn up jeans with an old white tee and then throw an over-sized button up shirt over that. She'd put on her steel toed boots once she got there just in case she was needed out on the site. Today though, without even realizing it, she'd dressed just a little bit nicer. She didn't know if John would show up unexpectedly, but she didn't want to look like a complete slob just on the off chance that he would. She walked back into the kitchen, prepared her coffee, grabbed her things and opened the door. She was surprised by a man poised to knock on her door. He was a middle-aged man, not much taller than her, a bit round around the middle, with a slightly pinched look on his face until he looked up and saw her. He smiled and started speaking to her.

"Uh hello, Ms. Greyson?"

"Yes...?" Kat answered hesitantly. The man reached down towards his waistband and Kat flinched back slightly away from the door; ready to slam the door and grab her gun from her purse to defend herself. Thankfully that was unnecessary because the object the man pulled out was a detective's badge.

"I'm Detective Lionel Fusco. I'm sorry to bother you but I'm going to be...uh...making sure you get to your job site safely and back home again today."

One of Kat's hips dropped as one of her eyebrows cocked up. Both hands flew to her hips as she gave the man her best 'excuse me' look. The Detective clipped his badge back onto his belt and held both palms up towards her in supplication.

"Hey, listen...I'm sorry but you're not leaving without me because, well… ya know, I'd like to still be breathing tomorrow and honestly there's no way I'll be doing that if John found out that I hadn't done just that." His gruff voice coupled with his thick New York accent made what he said about John all the more amusing to her. "So please, don't tell me that you don't need my services or anything like that 'cause I'm just gonna follow ya anyway. It'll be easier on both of us if you just let me take you to work and then drive ya home when you're done. I promise not to get in your way, OK?"

The look on the man's face when he mentioned John was almost comical. Kat could tell that the man had a deep respect, if not an outright fear of John. She wondered, not for the first time, how John could force two New York City detectives to take time away from their job to be her own personal freaking body guard. Yet another thought she filed away to ask John about later.

"OK Detective..." Kat started. "...on one condition.

The man looked taken aback. "And what would that be honey?"

She leveled a stare at him that she used when she was being serious with her crew. "Make that two conditions. One, you call me Kat. Two...don't call me honey."

The detective let out a hearty chuckle at that. "OK then, Kat it is. I'm Lionel." He held out a hand to Kat and she took it.

"Well Lionel, I've got to get going, so..."

"Sure! Let's go then." He stepped back into the hallway as Kat stepped out from her apartment. They walked down to the street and Lionel directed her over to his vehicle. The conversation on the way to the site was light. He told her about his son and how he enjoyed playing field hockey. They never did broach the topic of John but the ride wasn't that long either. Kat could usually walk to the site in twenty minutes.

When they pulled onto the site, she had Lionel take her over to her office. She invited him in and asked if he wanted some coffee. He accepted so she started a pot. Kat sat down at her desk and went over how she was going to broach the topic with her crew about Liam. Kat didn't want them knowing exactly what had happened, but she also didn't want them to think that Liam had been fired and then try to go contact him and find out that way. Lionel sat down in the chair across from her desk and she decided to ask him his opinion on the subject.

~~~~~~~~~~~

John smirked as he listened to the conversation between Kat and Fusco. He had a feeling that she would be able to put the man in his place when he'd heard the man call her 'honey'. He was glad that he'd decided to go ahead and have Lionel go over to Kat's place when he did. John hadn't been sure what time she would want to go out to the site but he really didn't want to take the chance that she'd head out there early and Lionel would miss her.

His latest number had turned out to be quite uneventful so far. He'd been sitting in Harold's Lincoln for a couple of hours now; in full stakeout mode but there had been absolutely nothing to watch, other than a couple of kids making out on a park bench in front of the pawn shop that he was watching. He'd decided to listen in on Kat to find out where she was at and if Lionel had presented himself to her yet. When she asked him about what his opinion was on how to approach her workers about Liam he actually sat up straighter, anticipating Lionel's answer. It had better be a good one, if he knew what was good for him...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Hey Lionel, I don't know how much John, or Joss has told you about what happened here a couple of nights ago..."

""Yeah, I know. I'm sorry to hear you were hurt."

"Well, about that... Liam was one of my foremen and really, the only reason I came in today was because I wanted to tell my crew something... I need to. I didn't want them finding out about what happened through the grapevine or whatever... I just. I have no idea how to tell them. How much, how little... ya know?"

"Yeah..." He leaned back in the chair, his belly straining against his shirt a little more and he stretched his legs out. His eyes turned up to the ceiling; she could tell he was thinking about it so she didn't interrupt. She did get up to go fix a cup of coffee for him though. When she'd finished pouring she handed him the cup.

"Cream and sugar's over there if you need any."

"Nope, black is fine. Thanks."

She went back and sat down and started back in on her own coffee.

"Ya know... Kat, these guys, on your crew... are they pretty good guys?"

"The best, in my opinion...or I wouldn't have hired them. But then on the other hand, it's obvious that my hiring decisions are in question right now because I hired Liam...and we all know what happened with him..."

"You can't beat yourself up though hon...Kat..."

He caught himself quick enough so she didn't correct him. The sheepish look he gave her almost had her giggling.

"Nobody's perfect, ya know? So you hired a douche bag. Shit happens... you move on. If your crew's as good as you think they are, they're not gonna think any less of you. In fact, I have a feeling that they might wanna bring him back and kill him again... but that's just what I'd wanna do."

Kat smiled warmly at him. "Thanks Lionel. I appreciate that."

"Yeah no problem darlin'..." He sighed. "I'm sorry..Kat."

This time she did allow herself to giggle. 'Typical', she thought. Little nicknames for women, that was just his personality and she wasn't going to fault him for it. She actually thought he was a pretty good guy from what she could tell. She was glad that John had sent the two detectives that he had and she wondered to herself how many others he had at his disposal. She stood up and walked over to Lionel and set her hand on his shoulder. "It's OK. I don't mind." She smiled. "I'm going to head out. I had one of my assistant foremen call the guys together for a meeting at eleven."

"You want me to go out there with ya?"

"No...I'll be fine. Thanks though."

"Hey..." He called out as she was headed out the trailer's door. "Just come back in here when you're done, OK?"

"Will do."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
Kat walked out and headed down to where she could see the men gathered over at the West end of the site. She saw Mario, one of her crew that had been with her for years, notice her and wave. Her stomach was churning in nervous waves. She was not looking forward to this at all but she did feel a little better after what Lionel said to her. Yeah, Liam was a Douche bag. She hadn't done anything wrong. She tilted her chin up, threw her shoulders back and walked confidently towards the group of men.

When she got close enough to the guys she heard the gasps from several of them. She didn't hear the whispers that she would have if the group had been women. No, the men were much more vocal. She heard the chorus of: 'what the hell happened', 'are you OK', and her favorite; 'who the fuck do we need to kill'.

Mario yelled for the men to quiet down so Kat could speak. She looked over at him in appreciation.

"Hey guys, I called everyone together to make an announcement. As you can tell, Liam's not here today." She heard a couple of voices that didn't sound too saddened at the news. "He won't be returning either."

Jeff, one of the guys that had been involved with 'talking' to Liam after his first run-in with Kat, shouted out; "Does him not bein' here have anything to do with what happened to you?" She sighed as she closed her eyes and then opened them slowly before responding.

"Liam made the decision that he didn't want to work here anymore when he called me out to the site Saturday night. He told me that it had been robbed and that the police wouldn't take a statement from him and that I had to come down here. When I got here, he attacked me. I shot him. He won't be back." She kept her eyes locked on Mario rather than looking around at the crew as she continued. "I'm replacing him with Mario. You all know how hard he works." When she was done she was met with complete silence. It kind of unnerved her but then one of the men in the back whooped and soon after ,it seemed like the entire crowd of men were cheering. Mario walked over and laid his hand on her shoulder as the men calmed and started talking amongst themselves. "Miss Kat, you OK? I never did like that guy ya know... He would say nice things to your face and then turn around and talk bad about ya."

"Yeah, I will be...thanks Mario."

"Hey, why don't you take a few days off, huh? I can take care of things around here. The job's comin' along nicely and really, there isn't anything that you need to do that I can't handle for you right now."

Kat shook her head. She didn't want to sit around at home alone thinking about what had happened to her. "That's sweet of you Mario, and I know that you could handle everything. I just... I don't need to be home right now." His deep brown eyes searched hers before he responded.

"OK but just remember the offer's there if you want to."

Kat placed her hand over his and squeezed the older man's hand. "I'll be in the office if you need me."

"Thanks guys." She called out as she walked back to the office. She heard the 'good jobs', and 'he deserved it' follow her as she walked across the site's lot and back up to the trailer. The men also congratulated Mario on his new promotion. Lionel was on the phone as she walked back in, obviously finishing up a conversation quickly. "Yeah, I'll let you know. Uhuh. OK yeah, you're welcome." And then he disconnected the call.

"Hey, Kat. How'd it go?"

"It was a little easier than I had expected. They took the news of Liam's departure and his replacement really well, actually."

"See, I told ya. Douche bags aren't well liked around good guys ya know?"

She chuckled. "Yeah."

"So... what's the plan. Are you gonna stay the rest of the day or are ya wantin' to head out...We could go grab some lunch, if you're hungry or somethin'"

"Ya know Lionel, that doesn't sound like a bad idea at all. I didn't have any breakfast, so I am kinda hungry. Where do you want to go?"

"There's a nice little Italian restaurant, V's, a couple blocks away. You like Italian?"

"Heck yeah...I love that place."

"Let's go then!" Now that was something that Lionel could get excited about, Kat thought. Food!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

John listened in when Lionel gave Kat his advice on talking to her crew about what had happened and how she should present it to them. He would have to call and thank him for that. John had actually been quite pleased with what Lionel had said to her. Then when she'd made the announcement, he hadn't been able to keep the smile from his face. 'Good girl, short and sweet', he said to himself. When he'd heard the men around her cheering and some of the things that they were saying to her; he felt much better about her being around them. He still didn't like being away from her but it made him feel a little less uncomfortable.

His thoughts were interrupted by an unsavory looking character walking into the pawn shop that he had been parked outside of since earlier this morning. The owner, a Mr. George Garcia's belonged to the number that had come up that morning and pulled him away from Kat. He clicked over to Mr. Garcia's phone, which he'd blue jacked earlier and listened in as the man who had grabbed his attention, started speaking.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The rest of Kat's day was uneventful. As they were driving back to her apartment, Kat said to Lionel, "I TOLD you that I didn't need any 'help' and I'm sorry you wasted your day babysitting me. You might want to tell John 'No' next time he asks you for a similar favor."

"Yeah, right. Mr. Sunshine wouldn't take that from me any more than he obviously took it from you, considering the fact that he called me in. But you go ahead and try it sometime, lemme know how that works out for ya." Lionel replied.

Kat invited Lionel in for a beer when they'd arrived back at her apartment but he'd declined. It was his day off and he was picking up his son and taking him to a ballgame and then a movie. She smiled and thanked him again for today and wished him a good time with his son. A few minutes later she was heating up the leftovers of last night's dinner that she'd made for her and Joss when she heard pounding on her front door. It startled her enough that she didn't move right away. When it continued, she walked over and grabbed her gun out of the drawer in the little table by the door. She stepped in front of the peep hole and looked through it. She frowned.

She unlocked the door and opened it to an anxious looking Joss.

"Hey Joss. What's..."

"Kat, I need you to pack a bag as quick as you can. You need to come with me, now."

"What? What are you talking about?"

"Look Kat, I'm sorry but I really don't have time to explain. You're in danger, that's all I know and you have to leave your apartment." Joss walked into the apartment and down towards the bathroom. "If you want to get some clothes together I can grab anything you need in here." She looked over her shoulder at Kat who was still standing by the open front door. "Kat!" She called.

Kat flinched. "Huh?"

"Please, get movin'. Get some clothes. What do you need from the bathroom?"

"I...uh...toothbrush..." She started down the hall and turned into her bedroom. She grabbed an overnight bag and threw in some underwear, bras, shirts, and jeans along with a couple dresses. She had no idea where Joss was taking her or how long she'd be gone. Kat stood there staring down at her bag when Joss walked into the room.

"Are ya ready?"

"Where are we going?"

"I'm sorry, I don't know yet. What I do know is that I've gotta get you outta here now. Come on."

Joss put Kat's toothbrush and some other items into the pocket in the side of her bag, zipped it up and pulled it onto her shoulder. She grabbed Kat's arm and pulled her along with her. "Grab your purse, and keep that gun on you too."

"OK." Kat grabbed her keys, purse, phone and her Sig and followed Joss out of the apartment.


	7. Chapter 7

AN: And the mature content begins. If you don't like to read about hot sex between Reese and a gorgeous woman, please skip this chapter. OR read and ENJOY!

And please review if you like…reviews are an author's 'Reesey Chocolate'!

Don't forget we've also archived our story over on thehookupzone.

thehookupzone / POI (no spaces)

Chapter 7

John grabbed his Sig from where it sat on the seat next to him and cocked it as he quietly exited the car and jogged around to the back of the pawn shop. As far as he had been able to determine, Mr. Garcia ran a pretty reputable business, as far as pawn shops went. It seemed that the problems had started when a scorned Mrs. Lindsay Ohde had sold her extremely valuable wedding ring to Mr. Garcia about a month ago. Mr. Garcia had tried to talk the woman into putting the ring on consignment rather than taking a lower price for it, and that way if she were to want the ring back, she would only have to pay the fee. She had been adamant however about never going back to the cheating bastard so Mr. Garcia had actually given her a fair price for it. Recently though, the wife decided to stay with her husband and early today had gone back to the pawn shop to get her ring back but found it was already gone. When Mrs. Ohde learned that the ring had been bought she threw a fit, one that had had even John concerned about Mr. Garcia's well fare. She ran home and told her husband that her ring had been stolen and that she'd found it at Mr. Garcia's pawn shop but that he wouldn't give it to her. She knew her husband, being the kind of man that he was, would go down there and probably hurt the man. That was exactly what had happened except for the fact that Mr. Ohde had plans to not only get his wife's ring back but also to make the pawn shop owner pay for the trouble.

When John found Mr. Ohde walking down the sidewalk towards the shop he watched the man carefully. He was getting ready to get out and stop the man but his phone buzzed; signaling a new text message. He quickly scanned the message and paled.

"Shit!" He dialed Carter's number and she picked up on the first ring.

"You need me to babysit your girlfriend again?" She whispered into the phone, which meant she was sitting at her desk where other detectives could overhear. He paused for a second at her words but he didn't have time to give her shit back.

"Carter, I need you to get Kat, now! Get her out of her apartment. They know where she is and they're coming for her."

"Wait, what John? Who's after her? Do I need to call for backup?"

John could hear her holster her sidearm as she was speaking so at least she was already moving. "I don't have time Carter. Please just go. Get her out. I'll call you as soon as I'm done here."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kat had been silent since she'd sat down in Joss's car. When they stopped in front of a neat brownstone she finally spoke. "Joss, what's going on?"

"I don't know much, Kat. I'm sorry. What I do know is that when John calls and tells me someone's in trouble, I listen because he's always right.

"Wait, John called you?" She turned and looked at Joss with a frown.

"Don't get your panties in a bunch. It sounded like he was in the middle of something and didn't have time to talk. He said they knew where you were and they were coming for you. He asked me to get you out. He called me because...because he trusted that I would."

"But...who...how...did he know? I don't understand."

"Listen sweetie, I don't know all the answers to your questions. I may never know. What I do know is that I trust John. When he says somethin's gonna happen, it's gonna happen."

Kat took a deep breath and exhaled slowly as she let her eyes fall closed and her head lean back against the seat. "OK. So now what? Where are we?"

"We're at my house."

Kat heard Joss's phone buzz. Joss dug it out from her pocket and read the text message. "And now we're going somewhere else."

"Where?"

"Not sure. John asked me to drive you to this address and he'll meet us there." She handed the phone over to Kat and drove off.

When they were in the general vicinity of the address, Joss asked if Kat would read it off to her again. She knew they had arrived when she saw a tall, lean figure dressed all in dark clothes step out of the shadows of the building and move to the edge of the street. Joss pulled up to the curb and shifted the car into park. The lanky, yet broad-shouldered figure reached out to open Kat's door and leaned in.

"Detective, I can't thank you enough for your help."

"Uh huh... Hey, where's Finch by the way? Haven't heard from him lately. No calls...no nothin' actually. Wait...he's not pissed at me for, ya know...findin' out about Fusco and all, is he?"

"No Carter. He's not upset with you." John quickly changed the subject. "I trust you didn't run into any...problems at Kat's place, then?"

"Nope. Didn't see anyone.

"OK, good."

Kat looked up at John; his eyes closed and then opened as they turned slowly to her.

"Kat..."

She studied his face for a moment before he backed out of the door and stepped back so that she could exit the car. John opened the back door and grabbed her bag off the back seat, thanked Joss again before she drove off, and then stepped towards Kat.

"Are you all right?" He asked, slowly raising his hand to caress her cheek.

"Seriously?" Kat asked incredulously. "You send a detective to pick me up at my home because you're out doing something obviously so dangerous that you can't even break off to come get me yourself and you want to know if _I'M_ all right?" She stepped away from him and her eyes slowly searched his face and then started scanning over the rest of his body. Slowly taking inventory of what she could see that wasn't being hidden by his clothing.

"I'm fine. Let's get you inside." He reached down to take her hand but she pulled away from him.

"No, John. I would really like to know what's going on." Her voice rose with anger or fear, John wasn't sure which but he didn't want her causing a scene out here on the street.

"Kat please. Come inside where we can talk..." His eyes roamed the seemingly empty windows of the building across the street and then over to the chess park just down the way. "...in private...please?" He stepped closer to her, his eyes imploring. "Please?" She nodded, this time she was the one who reached out to him. Her hand met his arm and slowly ran down to his hand where her fingers laced with his.

He opened the door to the building for her and guided her up the stairs to his apartment door. When they walked in Kat asked. "John, do you...live here?"

"I do."

Even though there was only one lamp turned on in the entire place, she could still see how large it was just judging by the distance between them and the windows that lined the entire loft. "Wow...it's...so big!" Kat thought that he had to make some damn good money to afford a place like this. Not that she cared about money, but...wow.

He chuckled softly as he slid his suit jacket off of his broad shoulders and hung it on a hanger and placed it on the coat rack by the door. Her eyes immediately searched him yet again, looking for any blood stains on his dress shirt or telltale signs of any newly acquired or re-injured places on his body.

"I'm fine, Kat." John said firmly.

"I'm glad. Really I am, John. But can you please tell me what the hell's going on now?"

He sighed as he walked past her over to the kitchen and opened the refrigerator. "Would you like a drink?"

"Sure."

He grabbed a couple of beers out, opened them and then walked over to Kat. He handed her a bottle and they each took a drink before he started speaking. "I received...information that you were in imminent danger. I was right in the middle of a job...If I hadn't had Detective Carter to call I wouldn't have hesitated leaving to come get you. I'm sorry. I..."

"Where did you get this information from? I mean, I was at my apartment. Hell, I'd been with a freaking detective, that you sent to be with me, all damn day! How did you get it and then call Joss...Lionel hadn't been gone an hour when Joss showed up at my house. How in the hell... I don't understand."

"I received the information and I called Detective Carter, I... Kat, please trust me."

Heturned and walked towardsher until he was standing directly in front of her. His eyes closed briefly before they opened again to find hers looking up into them...searching...yet...open, trusting.

"John, I do...trust you. Do you think I'd be here if I didn't?"

God, he wished he deserved such trust from her! His blue eyes searched hers for what seemed like minutes. "Well, I didn't give you much choice."

She laughed quietly and shook her head. "No, I guess you didn't. But John..."He reached out and took the beer from her hand and set it, along with his, on a nearby table and then walked back over to stand in front of her. His arms slid around her waist and her breath caught in her throat. Her hands came up to rest on his chest, holding him back from pulling her closer to him.

"John..." She started.

"What's the matter?" He asked as he bent towards her.

"I...I have some questions first...and yes, I meant what I said; I do trust you...but after tonight, I can't just go into this blind. I need to know...how you knew..about someone wanting to come after me."

His eyes closed and his head turned away for a moment before he looked back at her and responded. "Kat...it's complicated."

Her brows pulled together in a frown. "Then _un-complicate_ it John, because it's making what Liam said to me that night make a little bit more sense...I can't..."

He quickly interrupted her. She watched as his eyes turned cold and his hands hardened against her back. "Wait...what? What do you mean, what Liam said? What did he say to you?"

"He...he said that someone had sent him to take care of me..."

"Wait, he told you that...that someone had hired him to kill you?"

"He didn't say it exactly like that...he said that I must have stepped on someone's dick... I pissed somebody off. That's what he said. Then he said that he was going to have a little fun with me before he killed me. That's how I knew, that night...that he was, without a doubt, going to kill me.

One of his hands rose to her face. His thumb began caressing her cheek while his long fingers wrapped around to the back of her neck and pulled her towards him. Kat wasn't sure it was possible but the cold look in his eyes intensified as he continued. "What else did he say Kat? Anything at all that you can remember. Nothing is irrelevant...I need to know every word that you can remember."

"Uh..." She struggled to think back to those moments that she'd tried purposefully to forget and John's warm body so close to hers wasn't helping her memory. She pushed her hands against his chest in an attempt to distance herself from him for a moment but with one arm wrapped around her back and one around her neck, it was like trying to push away from a brick wall and out of a vice. "John... I can't..."

"What else did he say Kat? You've got to think...it's important."

She shook her head. "Let go John, please. I can't think like this."

Almost immediately his eyes changed from cold and calculating to worried and searching. His arms recoiled and he stepped away from her. "I'm so...so sorry Kat. I didn't mean to scare you. I never...ever want you to be afraid of me. I'll never hurt you. I swear."

She reached for him before he could retreat any further and caught his hand. "No... John it's not that I was scared. I just..." She shrugged her shoulders. "I just couldn't think with you...that close and...uh..." Her eyes turned down and met the floor. She could feel her cheeks getting hot and then she felt his hand tighten around hers. She looked up and met his eyes. He smiled down at her and then pulled her with him as he walked over to one of the couches. It was a little darker over on this side of the room but she could see him hold out his arm in an invitation to take a seat. She sat down and he took a seat next to her but not too close she noticed. She smiled, pleased that he had been listening to her, but his hand didn't relinquish its hold on hers.

"Please Kat, can you try and think back, I know it's painful for you and I'm so sorry that I have to ask you to think about it but I really do need to know of anything else that Liam said." She felt the increase of pressure around her hand for just a moment; a gesture of encouragement.

She sighed heavily as she let her mind access the memories of that evening. She went over everything that Liam had said to her in as much detail as she could recall. She told him about Liam saying that he'd been paid to keep her from taking any more contracts in the city. How she must have stepped on someone's dick, with her 'mannish' ways, and how he'd told her that somebody higher up the food chain wanted her gone. And finally how he said that whoever had hired him had left it up to Liam as to how he could take her out and how he'd said that he was going to have a little fun with her first. By the time she had finished her account of everything that she could remember Liam saying that night, there were tears streaming down her face. She looked down at John's hand wrapped around hers, studying both his and her own fingers wrapped around each other's. His thumb was lightly tracing patterns over hers and then down and around underneath and then back up again. She watched as her skin reacted to his touch. She knew what it was doing to her insides but she couldn't hide the obvious signs on the outside. She looked up to find John watching her behind hooded eyes, his long dark lashes hid most of the dark blue she knew to be hiding behind them.

"That's all of it. What he said after that didn't have anything to do with the hiring or who was involved. And before you ask if I'm sure, yes... I'm sure his slicing open of my lingerie and how I was always a tease, had nothing to do with anything but what was inside his sick and twisted mind."

Her breath hitched as she stopped the sob before it could escape. He immediately moved towards her, his other hand; the one that wasn't holding hers, rose to her face where he gently wiped away her tears with his fingers. She leaned her head into his hand and he took the opportunity to slide even closer to her and wrap his arm around her back. He lifted up the hand that was holding hers and pressed it to his lips. "John…" She whispered and then gasped at the feeling of his tongue flickering out to taste her skin with each new kiss that he placed over her fingers. He placed her hand on his shoulder and lightly stroked his way up her arm to her shoulder. His hand slid up behind her neck and pulled her slowly towards him. Her eyes had slid closed and her breathing was fast and uneven just from these little touches. When she felt his breath flowing over her mouth she slowly opened her eyes. His eyes, shining with a different kind of intensity, made her burn with desire for him. His fingers deftly moved over the skin at the base of her neck. She felt her body shiver and then John's arms had tightened around her; closing the space between them as his mouth claimed hers. The fire in her belly grew and spread throughout her entire body. Her arms wound around his neck and she pulled herself as close to him as she could as his lips feasted on hers and his tongue plundered her mouth.

Kat still wasn't close enough to him. She rose up; without breaking their kiss and straddled his lap. She pressed her chest against him as hard as she could and rolled her hips into the cradle of his lap. The groan that erupted from his chest was more like a growl and it made her lose just a little bit more of her control. Her hands dove into his short hair and she raked her fingers against his scalp. His hands slid down her back to her hips where his fingers dug in and pulled her hips tightly against his. He thrust up against her and she could feel him, rock hard and pressing up between her legs. She moaned his name as she rolled her hips against his again. His hands left her momentarily and slid up under the bottom of her shirt until his fingers found her soft skin. The electricity that she felt from his skin touching hers caused her to arch her back in surprise which in turn pushed her hips down onto him again.

Each time she felt him slide between her legs she thought that she would come undone. She wanted, no she needed the layers between them gone. She wanted nothing more than to feel his body on her, inside of her, his skin rubbing against hers. Her fingers tried to undo the buttons of his shirt as his hands continued to travel further up her back until they slid around to her chest where they cupped her breasts. The buttons were almost forgotten as his thumbs slowly began gliding across her nipples. She felt them harden under his touch and she let her head fall back as she moaned his name again. " ." She whispered. She guessed that's all he was needing; her permission, as if she hadn't already given it. His hands pulled her shirt up over her head and she heard stitches rip and pull as he yanked it off of her. Her own hands flew to his shirt again pulling at it to get to his chest. His fingers easily unclasped her bra and then he was pulling her arms from him so that he could slip the straps from her. Her head fell back again as his mouth found one nipple and he had it pulled into his mouth before she could call out his name again while his hand rose to attend to her other nipple by rolling and pulling it between his fingers. She started to feel the sharp pull deep in her core. She thought that there was no way that this could be happening when they hadn't even taken all of their clothes off yet. But she wanted him so badly and he was more skilled than any other lover she'd ever had. She felt his teeth grasp her nipple firmly between them and his tongue started quickly licking it over and over and then his hips thrust up into her again and she cried out his name as she felt her orgasm take over her entire body. His mouth left her breast and started slowly kissing his way up to her neck.

She tried to speak in between trying to catch her breath. "Oh...John...Holy... How the hell...did you... do that?" Kat felt his warm breath on her neck as he chuckled lightly and then moved his way up to her ear.

His tongue flickered out and he caught her earlobe in his lips and sucked it gently before letting it slide back out before answering her. "Do what? I didn't really do anything. You did all the work."

"The hell I ..." She tried to respond but his mouth had taken her ear again.

"Really Kat..." He started, when he'd released it again. "I was just enjoying myself."

"Oh..." She breathed. "Is that what that was?"

"Mm hmm."

"Well then..." She placed her hands on his chest and pushed herself back from him. "...allow me to enjoy myself a little too." She slid the rest of the way off of his lap and dropped to her knees in between his legs. Her hands started rubbing from his knees, up his thighs, and to his belt where her fingers immediately went to work on getting it undone. She pulled the belt slowly out and set it on the floor beside her. She then unbuttoned his jeans and slid the zipper down, slowly releasing him from the tight confines. She hadn't thought that they were tight until she saw what had been hidden underneath. She gasped in appreciation as she pulled the waistband of his boxers away from him and down, now releasing him completely to be admired. He raised his hips so that she could slide his clothing down his long legs and have full access. She slowly lifted one of his legs and then the other so that she could remove his clothing entirely and set them aside out of her way. Then he slid his hips forward on the couch so that he was closer to her.

She caught John looking down at her, watching her; his eyes so dark that she couldn't even tell that they were blue at the moment. The smile that raised his lips was almost as dark and again she felt chills start at her scalp and work their way down to her toes. His arms were stretched out across the back of the couch, one was bent so that his fingers were resting against those lips that she had just been kissing moments ago. She thought it was one of the sexiest things she'd ever seen. She envied those fingers at the moment, but not for long. Her lips would have something else to do. She placed her palms against the inside of his knees and pushed them gently further apart. Then they slid slowly up his legs to where they met. She ran her fingers up underneath to cup his balls gently in her hand and grasped his very impressive shaft firmly with her other hand. She started massaging him with the palm of her hand.

She leaned up, keeping eye contact with him as she let her tongue slowly slip out and lick his tip. His sharp intake of breath made her smile as she bowed her head and took him in her mouth, taking care to only touch him with her lips...for the moment. She pulled back and repeated her action a couple of times before she lowered her mouth further down the length of him. She let her tongue drag up the underside as she brought her head back up again. Kat heard him moan as her teeth lightly grazed the tip as she moved her head back and forth just before she reached the end while she continued moving her other hand, massaging him in her palm.

When Kat lowered her mouth again, she started swirling her tongue and pressing it firmly against him. She had almost reached the base when she felt the head of his shaft nudge the back of her throat. She moaned, allowing her throat to close around him.

"Oh God...Kat!" He called out, then she felt his fingers threading through her hair. She started moving her mouth more quickly up and down on him, using her hand to work the rest that she couldn't fit inside until she could feel the muscles in his thighs starting to tense. Then she felt his hands under her chin, pulling her up from him, and not allowing her to go back down again. His hands moved to her shoulders and he pulled her up so that she was now kneeling with her hands resting on his knees. John started unbuttoning her jeans, his long fingers brushing the sensitive skin of her stomach allowing that fire to rekindle in her core. As soon as he had them undone, he slid them down to her knees and then he pulled her up onto the couch and laid her onto her back. He slowly pulled her jeans and panties down the rest of the way and laid them on the floor.

Kat was now completely stripped and bared for him to take and do with as he saw fit. His eyes raked over her lasciviously but she had never felt more beautiful in her life as she did right then. She lifted her arms; reaching out, another invitation for him. He took it without a second thought. His body slid up hers and his hips came to rest firmly against hers. He slipped one arm under her shoulders so that she was inclined slightly; her breasts jutting out towards him. He slipped his other arm under her right knee and brought it almost up to her chest. "Please, John...now." Those were the only words that left her mouth before he was buried to the hilt inside of her.

She cried out again as he filled her. Her hands wound around his neck and pulled him closer to her as he began to move. She brought her other leg up and looped it over his back. He moved agonizingly slow. She wanted more of him but she didn't know how to tell him. His head fell forward and he whispered to her in between lightly nipping her neck. "Kat..."

"Yes...oh...yes..." She tried responding in between his nips and kisses and him saying her name in that voice like crushed velvet being slid over her skin.

"Oh God, John." She cried as he suddenly thrust into her harder. Her back arched and pushed her chest up against his.

"You like that?" He asked as he pounded into her again.

"Yes!" She cried.

"Then I'll keep..." He pushed into her harder and then pulled almost all the way out. "...doing it..." He slammed back into her and pulled out again. "Until you tell me to stop."

"God John, please...don't stop..." she ground out before he thrust back into her again. This time her body bowed as the force of her orgasm took over. She called his name over and over as he continued to rock inside of her. After a couple more thrusts she felt his back tense under her fingers as he came. He wasn't loud or forceful, instead he slid his arm from under her leg and gently wrapped it underneath her back where his other arm was and pulled her tightly against him whispering her name with his lips pressed against her ear.

The aftershocks of her orgasm had Kat shaking beneath him for several minutes afterwards. Every time her body would convulse she could feel John's reaction to it. He had collapsed just to the side of her, up against the back of the long end of the L-shaped couch, so that his full weight wasn't resting directly on her. She smiled as he nuzzled her neck and kept whispering her name. 'God, he certainly knew how to make her feel special.'

Her fingers drew little patterns over his bare back as they lay there wrapped in each other's arms. She wanted to ask him if his arm was ok but she didn't want to move in fear that she might ruin the moment.

A few minutes later John was saying her name again. She opened her eyes but she wasn't sure if she was waking up from a dream or if he was actually saying her name. When she found his eyes staring down at her she smiled. "I'm sorry...I must have dozed off."

He nodded and his own smile lit up his face making his eyes crinkle around the corners. "You did, but it's perfectly fine. I quite enjoy watching you sleep."

"Oh...do you now?"

"Mm hmm."

Her eyes flickered over to the bandage that was covering the knife wound that she had stitched up only yesterday. She saw no signs of it bleeding through so she was at least appeased that their activities hadn't aggravated the wound.

"Kat?"

"Hmm?" She knew he'd caught her staring so she tried to play it off by averting her eyes quickly.

"Would you do me a favor...please?" He pulled one of his arms out from underneath her and ran the back of his knuckles across her cheek. His brows pulled together for a fraction of a second as he went by the gash that was still angry and red, but then the frown was gone and his eyes were soft again.

"Anything." That response caused him to smile brightly again.

"Come to bed with me?"

She really didn't know where that question had come from. Why would he think that she wouldn't? She cocked her head to the side as she answered. "Yes, yes of course. You really didn't have to ask, you know."

"Well... I didn't want to assume."

She unwound her arms from his back and reached up and took his face in her hands. "John... you just had me on your couch...why would you have to ask to have me in your bed?"

"But Kat, that's not how I'd planned it."

She giggled. "Oh, so you had this all planned, huh?"

"No...no, not like th..."

"John, I was kidding." She pulled him down to kiss him soundly.

When they broke off, John eased off of her and swung his legs around and then helped her sit up. She tried to cover herself but John reached for her hands and took them into his. "Please don't..."

She looked up at him. "Don't what?"

"Cover yourself like that." He lifted one hand to cradle her face as he ran his thumb over her cheek. "You're beautiful."

Kat felt her face get hot again and tried to lower it but John's hand stayed her movement. He cupped both sides of her face and gently stood them both up. She swayed a little once she was on her feet but his arms slid down to her shoulders to steady her. He wrapped his arm around her lower back and guided her over to the large bed sitting at the other side of his apartment. He pulled down the covers and then turned her to face him. "Would you like some water?"

"Yes, actually, that would be great." Kat sat down on the edge of the bed and watched John walk across the room over to the open kitchen as naked as the day he was born. She admired his body though. 'If you have one that good, you need to show it off!' She shivered at the way that his skin pulled against his well-defined muscles rippling just underneath. No, he wasn't what she would call overly muscular but then she personally didn't like that look anyway. John was tall, strong, and not to mention gorgeous. As he walked back towards her, he flipped off the lamp by the front entrance plunging the room into darkness except for the light of the half-moon; but not before she saw him in full view, in all his splendid glory. She closed her eyes and shook her head, almost disbelieving that she had just had...'all that'. When Kat opened her eyes back up, 'all that' was standing directly in front of her with her water. She reached out and took it and drank a large sip.

John walked over to the other side of the bed, set his water down and crawled onto the bed towards her. He knelt down behind her and slid his hands onto her shoulders. She felt his long fingers start to knead her shoulders before they moved down her arms. She dropped her head forward and her chin hit her chest. She felt John take the bottle of water from her hand and set it on the nightstand, then he was back behind her with his hands on her shoulders again. His hands moved down to her arms again and then she felt him nuzzle her neck. She shivered as the chills overtook her. "Are you cold?" He whispered against her ear and she shivered again.

"No." She giggled. "You're tickling me."

Kat reached up and wrapped her hand around the back of his neck and pulled his head towards her as she turned her head. She moaned almost as soon as his lips touched hers. He pulled away just long enough to move her further onto the bed. His lips returned to hers and then he pushed her down onto her back and then he stretched out next to her.. His tongue slid into her mouth and then he angled his head so that he could deepen the kiss. She elicited a loud moan from him as she sucked his tongue even further back into her mouth.

John rose up above her and slid between her legs. He'd wanted to take his time with her but he couldn't help himself...in fact, he helped himself to her several more times before they both collapsed on the bed wrapped in each other's arms and finally, about Midnight, they were sleeping soundly.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kat wasn't sure what time it was when she woke, but she could feel John next to her thrashing a little in his sleep. She wondered what he was dreaming about. All of a sudden he spoke in an anguished tone of voice, "Harold!...I'm sorry!...Harold, I'm trying!"

Kat felt like her heart was being squeezed in a vice. She had no idea who Harold was but he obviously meant a lot to John. She rolled over closer to John and gathered his face in her hands and began stroking the side of his face. "Shhhh...John, you're ok, it's just a dream...shhh."

Gradually, John relaxed as she continued to murmur soothingly and touch him softly. As she drifted off next him, Kat once again wondered just what John did, though she had an inkling, and she wondered how he'd acquired so many battle scars.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

John woke at his customary early hour despite the fact that he'd had very little sleeplast night. In the service, he'd learned to take sleep as he could get it. John looked over at the beauty sleeping next to him. It'd been so long since he'd woken up to the welcome presence of a woman in his bed. He watched Kat take slow deep breaths and marveled at his good fortune. She was such a strong, passionate woman. He'd loved hearing her cries and moans as he had pleasured her repeatedly last night. Her enthusiasm and enjoyment had fueled his own and pushed him to limits he'd not thought possible. 'Let's be honest here, I'm no longer twenty!' He thought. But God, he just hadn't been able to get enough of her. Just thinking about it, he began reacting to her presence!

Besides being passionate, John loved that inner strength that Kat possessed. He wondered where it came from and determined today to try and find out as he got to know her. If only...if only Jessica had had a little bit more strength, came the traitorous thought. He'd been so young and so naive, thinking that he knew what was best for her, forcing her to a path she might not have taken otherwise, one that eventually killed her. Jessica had been such a sweet and kind woman and he'd loved her for it whole-heartedly. But if only she'd had a bit more strength...if she'd pushed back, stood up to him. He couldn't imagine Kat allowing him to dictate things to her. Oh no, she'd be standing up to him telling HIM how things were going to be, her eyes flashing, cheeks flushed, breathing heavily Just the mere thought of it had parts of him stirring restlessly again.

John reached over and gently ran his hand over her auburn hair, even in disarray from their wild night, it was smooth and oh so soft. His fingers drifted down to her cheeks, lightly caressing them. The cuts on her face made him angry all over again. If only he'd been a few minutes earlier, she'd have been spared that entire ordeal. One more example of how he ended up failing those who most needed him. He made a vow not to let it happen with Kat again, no matter what the cost. Kat let out a small groan in her sleep and shifted a bit so that she faced him. The duvet also shifted, exposing a breast. John smiled wickedly and moved closer. He leaned in and began kissing her soft lips. He felt it the minute she woke up, her lips curved into a smile and she returned his kisses with increasing fervor. His hand reached over and cupped her face.

After a minute or so, Kat pulled back but smiled at him and her fingers gently tracing over his mouth. "Thank you for that wonderful good morning kiss."

"You're welcome." He replied and leaned in to kiss her once again but she put her hand over his mouth.

"I'm sorry John, but I need a minute. Be right back." He caught a glimpse of her long legs and sweet little rear as she dashed out of bed quickly and ducked into the bathroom. He couldn't help but smile at her modesty despite all that they had done last night. He was looking forward to exploring every inch of that body of hers and the thought had him smiling and reacting once more like a school boy. Damn but he found her appealing! He hoped that she was as much in awe of his body as he was with hers. After all, his body was covered with numerous remnants and reminders from his years of service. However, she hadn't seem to mind them when tending to his wound the other night and she certainly hadn't seemed repulsed by them at all last night. After a few minutes in the bathroom during which he heard her turn on the water and start humming, the door opened and Kat dashed back for the bed and dived under the covers.

John chuckled to himself, then reached for her and hugged her tightly to him. "Sweetheart, why are you so embarrassed? You must know that you are absolutely beautiful." He watched as a look of disbelief crossed over her face. "I'm looking forward to seeing every inch of you, today." He watched as her skin turned pink and then he laughed. "You didn't think I was done with you, did you?" He asked in a whisper.

"No, and I'm not done with you either." She spoke after a minute and smiled up at him. "I'm just wondering when that damn phone of yours is going to start ringing and you'll have to dash off again to work."

"Darling, today you ARE my work...and my pleasure." He murmured huskily. "I'm here to take care of you and only you. In fact, it's about time I did just that." And before she could speak, he covered her mouth with his and began devouring her lips. He felt Kat run her hands through his hair and he shivered a little as her fingers stroked the back of his neck. Oh what her touch did to him! John moved to the corners of her mouth and kissed and licked her there before moving his lips over her cheek and down to her neck. When he reached just the right spot, she let him know with a little gasp. He spent several minutes kissing, sucking and nipping that spot on both sides of her neck. Kat pushed her head back into the pillow, exposing her neck to him further and he knew she was enjoying what he was doing to her. Oh but wait until she realized what he still had in store for her! He almost lost it, imagining her reactions to what his mouth would eventually be doing to her. He had to slow his thoughts down and make sure that she enjoyed every minute of what he was doing to her. For once he was glad of the training he'd received on how to read people and their body language, not that Kat was trying to hide anything but it helped him to gage her reaction to what he was doing. He felt her fingers glide down from his neck to his shoulders and back again. He nipped her a little harder with his covered lips and instantly soothed her with his mouth but not before he felt her dig her nails into his back. He did it again on her other side just to see if she would have the same reaction. He growled a little when she did.

Slowly, John moved downward towards her breasts. He kissed and nipped all around the edges of her areola in ever decreasing circles, trying to heighten her anticipation. Just as he was about to reach her nipple, he switched to the other breast and did the same. He smiled to himself as she exhaled loudly in frustration. When his mouth did finally close over her nipple and he drew it in, Kat moaned unabashedly. He released her and did it again, this time sucking a little harder. He repeated the action over and over again, sucking a little harder each time. He switched to her other breast and gave it the same attention while using his fingers to tease and pull the nipple of the first. Kat moaned again and gasped out his name. After several minutes spent worshipping her breasts, John once again moved on, this time, his lips travelled from her breast to her side and down towards her hip. He distracted her from what he was doing by continuing to rub and squeeze her nipples. Once he reached her hip, he followed the natural line to the slight hollow between her leg and her body and licked and nipped her there. Her body tensed as she gasped and then he brought his hands down to her legs and his mouth moved towards the apex of her thighs.

"John!" Kat cried out. "What are...no, you can't... not there... John!" She repeated as he slid his arms underneath her knees and reached back around to grip her thighs. "John! I've never... you...you can't!"

She tried to squirm out of his grasp but he just held her tightly and gradually spread her legs out before him. "Oh sweetheart but I told you I'd take care of you...and I am." With that, he plunged his tongue into her and he felt her almost come off the bed.

"John!" She cried out. He withdrew his tongue and plunged in once more before he licked upwards searching for that part of her that would give her the most pleasure. When his tongue found it and scraped over it, Kat gasped and cried out once more. "Ah, John!" Every time she cried out for him, he relished the thought that he was able to make her react so strongly to him. He danced his tongue around and around her, never actually fully touching her clit again. Her hips began to writhe beneath his relentless tongue and she cried out again, "Oh! John! Oh, please I...I need...ah!" He gripped her tighter and then sucked on her clit hard as if he were sucking the nectar of the gods into his mouth. Kat screamed and then he felt her body clench and shake as her climax took her.

John released her legs and in one fluid motion he was on top of her and plunging into her warmth. He could still feel the tremors in her inner muscles and he thought he'd never felt anything so good as her tight, hot sheath gripped him. He withdrew only to plunge in again and again, losing himself in her body as he had not allowed himself to do in years. As he climbed higher and higher he whispered her name like a mantra, amazed beyond belief that this woman was here making love with him. Just as he was about to reach his limit, Kat wrapped her legs around him and pushed him into herself deeper, causing him to tumble over the edge into oblivion.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kat's arms came up around John and held him close as she felt him slowly come down from his climax. She didn't know how she could thank this wonderful man for everything he had done for her. First in saving her life, then continuing to look out for her while she was in danger and now this... giving her pleasure like she'd never experienced before. In less than a week, she'd come to care for this man so deeply, she was a little frightened of it. She hugged him tighter and enjoyed the feeling of his warm body so close to hers.

A minute or two later, John sighed and lay down next to her. He reached over and caressed her cheek. "Are you alright Kat? You're awfully quiet all of a sudden."

Kat smiled at him, "How could I NOT be alrightafter that John?" The smile slid off her face and she said in a serious tone, "John, I don't... words just aren't adequate enough to express how thankful I am to you. You've saved my life and you continue to do so and now...I keep asking myself, how did I get so lucky?"

John's eyebrows rose in surprise. "Lucky?"

"Yeah... I met you." She said simply.

John's lips pulled up in a smile. "No Kat, I'm the lucky one."

Kat laughed and gave him a quick peck. "Now who's the one who can't take a compliment? So, on another note, are you hungry?"

John gave her a smirk, and said, "My you ARE an insatiable one aren't you?"

"John!" Kat exclaimed with a smile. "Would you like me to make breakfast, I meant!"

Smiling, John sat up. "Sure. I'll make the coffee?"

Kat nodded and smiling shyly at him, she got up and walked over to her bag and pulled out some clothes. John gave her an appraising look which she then returned when it was his turn to get out of bed in search of clothes.

"I'm going to make a quick call to my foreman and let him know I won't be in today." Kat told him.

"You'd better make that for the next few days. I'm not sure how long it will take me to discover who's trying to kill you." Kat frowned at that but said nothing as she reached for her phone.

"No, wait, you need to make the call from my phone in case someone is tracking yours." John said, handing her his cell. It was a cheap burn phone and it was just about time to get rid of it anyway. The next time he went out, he'd get a new one and also one for Kat too to use until it was safe to use her own.

Kat took the phone and dialed Mario's number. "Hi Mario! It's Kat...Good thanks, but I won't be in for a couple of days. Three at the most." She shot a stern look at John. Three days was all she could possibly miss. If he hadn't found out anything in three days, she and her Sig would just have to take the chance and go to work.

"Listen**,** George and Tom are supposed to start work on the west wall in two days so whoever's not working on the fifth floor needs to... yeah, ok, you're right Mario... I know you can, I wouldn't have promoted you otherwise...ok, I'll leave it in your hands then...but Mario, make SURE you check the concrete, you remember how that company sent us cheap stuff last time...yes, exactly...you find it's not up to standard you call me, I'LL call them and deal with it!...Wait, he did what? You tell him to report to my office Friday morning and in the mean time he's to get his ass off my site!...Yeah, ok, talk to you in a day or two. Any problems, you call."

Kat disconnected the call and turned to see John watching her. "What?" She asked self-consciously. She hoped he wasn't going to freak out about her being in charge of her own company. It hadn't seemed to matter to him in the coffee shop but maybe seeing her like this...

John closed the distance between them quickly and grabbed her by her sides. Suddenly he picked her up and swooped her around and then lowered her and hugged her tightly. It was such an unexpected reaction that it left her speechless for a moment.

"Oh, my Kat!" John said, kissing her firmly on the mouth. "You are such a strong, independent, beautiful woman and exactly what I want and need!"

Kat smiled at him and felt a thrill in the center of her belly when he called her 'his'. She hoped that he meant it. "I need you too, John." She smirked, "I need you...and want you...to make the coffee!"

She laughed playfully and John just growled. "I'll show you what you NEED, my Kat!" And he dipped her down and began kissing her exposed neck. He held her with his uninjured arm while the other ran up and down her body, cupping her sex, palming a breast and tweaking a nipple. In next to no time, Kat was panting with desire. John then stood her up on her feet, steadied her and then walked away towards the kitchen. "NOW you know what you need." He said. She stood there for a moment, her mouth hanging open and still panting hard from his touch...all that, and then he just walked away? 'Oh, he was SO going to pay for that!'

They ate breakfast sitting side by side on the bar stools at the counter and talked about her company. John seemed genuinely interested in how she ran the day to day operations and Kat was just happy that he was interested in what she had to say. In the past, most men's eyes just glazed over when she responded to their questions about her work. John was very easy to talk to and she didn't even realize that they had both finished their breakfast until he asked, "Are you done Kat or would you like something else?"

Kat shook her head, the images that came to mind from that last part of his question, had her imagination running wild. John got up off the stool and put the dishes in the sink after rinsing them. He came back around the counter and took her hand. At first she thought he was leading her back to the bed, she began blushing as she recalled his words about wanting to see every inch of her. But then John spoke in that velvety voice that she found so incredibly sexy. "How about a bath?"

Kat smiled and nodded and he continued to the bathroom, still holding her hand.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

Kat once again, couldn't help but be impressed by the size of things in John's apartment. When they entered the bathroom, John slid back a privacy screen near the far wall to reveal a huge, sunken bathtub. 'It's almost big enough to go swimming in!' She thought to herself. She made a note to herself that if she ever bought a house, she would install one of these babies in her own bathroom. She absolutely loved a good bath and... were those jacuzzi jets? She almost groaned aloud with pleasure.

"Wow!" Kat exclaimed, as John busied himself getting towels. "Color me impressed! I've never seen anything so big!" John just turned to her and smirked. "I didn't mean THAT! Though now that you mention it..." She sidled up to John and reached out to touch him. As soon as her hand rubbed up and down his lower half, he pulled her in abruptly and kissed her deeply before releasing her.

"I thought you wanted a bath, sweetheart. If that's changed, we could always..."

"No, no. I DO want a bath...with you." She interrupted him. He leaned over to turn on the water and then stripped off his shirt and pants. She stood there for a few seconds, once again marveling at his body and the self-confidence she saw in him. She hesitantly began removing her own clothes, first her shirt so that she could use her arms to somewhat hide her bare chest and then she slowly slid her pants down. She stood there with her shirt and pants draped in front of her before finally dropping them to the floor. It would definitely take some getting used to, being totally naked in front of him. She hadn't realized the extent to which her job had affected her thoughts about herself. She had to play down her feminine side at work so much that subconsciously she'd stopped thinking of herself in those terms but hadn't even realized it. She'd always had self-confidence to spare, she had just never thought of herself as beautiful...at least not to the degree that John saw.

When the bath was full enough, John gestured for her to get in. "Ladies first." She smiled up at him and took his proffered hand to step down into the bath. As she sat down, Kat gasped as parts of her body she was not used to using touched the hot water. The sting lasted only a second and John gave her a knowing smirk as he followed her into the bath. He sat down and pulled her back to him so that she was sitting between his legs and resting back against his chest.

"Mmmm. I could get used to this." Kat said resting her head on his chest and closing her eyes.

"I hope you do." He replied, wrapping his arms around her. "So, tell me about your family."

Kat smiled and started telling him about her parents and some of the funny memories she had growing up. The water cooled as she talked and they drained and re-filled the tub with hot water. She told him how she and her brother had found out from the school psychologist that her parents had been killed in a car accident. John hugged her tighter as she told of the time afterwards when she had felt so bewildered and lost. She'd felt like she was walking around in a trance most days.

"It was my brother who finally snapped me out of it. He threw me in the pool, clothes on and everything. When I came up for air and struggled to swim with my heavy clothes and shoes on, he watched for a minute or so and then dove in to pull me out."

"Kat, that's what you need to do!" He'd yelled at me after he'd drug me out. "You need to fight to live, fight to keep your head above water! It will get easier every day, I promise you...and you still have me...I want you to come back to me Kat. I NEED my sister."

"I was able to cope much better after that reminder that I still had family. It nearly broke my heart when he joined the service and left. He's been back on leave several times, but I miss him."

"I'm sorry." John said. "I'm sure it's just as hard for him to leave as it is for you to have him go."

"I know." She sighed. "Still, I'm looking forward to seeing him in a few months." She paused for a moment. "John, can I ask you something?"

"Um, sure. What is it?"

"Where did you get this wound? It...It looks like a 50 caliber bullet took a bite out of you." She asked, touching a pink scar on his leg.

"Kat... I.. " John hesitated. He couldn't bring himself to lie to her but he wasn't sure how much to tell her either. He was sure she knew what he did was dangerous, but suspecting something and having it confirmed were too different things. He didn't think that she was the type to run for the hills when things were unpleasant. Hell, he KNEW she wasn't or she wouldn't have come to the rescue of a little kid and some stranger. So, taking a deep breath, he decided to tell her a bit about his past.

"I was once in the Army and was deployed as a sniper with the Rangers. I'd finished my tour and decided not to re-enlist when 9/11 happened. Not long after, the government came calling. The CIA to be exact."

"Wow! Really? I take it the life of a spy appealed to you, Mr. James Bond?"

"How did you figure that out?" He laughed.

"Well I just can't see you at an analyst job, sitting at a desk all day."

"No, you're right." He grinned. "I was a spy and a sort of cleaner upper." The grin slid off his face. "Kat...I... did some things I'm not proud of. Things I should have said no to but didn't... the things I did...they haunt me...I..."

Kat slid away from him so that she could turn around and look into his eyes. She reached out and cradled his face in her hands. "John, you were following orders weren't you? And it bothers you... what you did?"

"Yes." He whispered.

"Well, you obviously feel badly about it. That's a start. And you can't undo what you did. It's how you live your life from now on that's going to matter in the end." She saw the disbelief in his eyes but she didn't know what else to say to him. She knew him and yet didn't. She'd just have to keep an eye open for a chance to show him what she meant.

"So..." She turned back around and settled herself against his chest again. "...back to my original question, how did you get this gunshot wound?"

"Well...technically, I'm dead. Or I WAS to the CIA, until they found my prints in the system after I was attacked in the subway and was forced to deal with some little punk-ass wannabe gun runners a few months ago. When they took me into the precinct to take a statement they took my prints too. That alerted the CIA that I was still alive. Once they located me, they tried to take me out."

Kat's jaw dropped and her mouth fell open. "They did WHAT? Why?"

"I was a loose end...a wild card. One they could no longer control." He shrugged. "How did you know what kind of a gunshot wound this was, by the way?"

"One of my brother's Army buddies got shot by one and delighted in bragging about it and showing it to me." Kat frowned. He'd been pretty annoying about it too. She suspected he had an ulterior motive in showing her his bare leg.

She turned around and caressed another scar on his chest. "And this one?"

"In Afghanistan. An insurgent snuck past the sentries. Took three men out."

"And this?" She leaned down and kissed another scar.

"I was in close combat with an Iraqi soldier. We were ordered to be silent. He came up behind me while I was dispatching his superior."

"This?" She kissed and licked another. She heard a sharp intake of breath.

"Interrogation." A pained look crossed her face before continuing.

"This?" Again she kissed the spot and then lightly nipped him.

"Ah!" He gasped. "Bayonet." Her brow cocked up and she gave him an odd look.

"This?" She moved lower down his torso and kissed and licked him yet again. Based on his increasing size, she could tell he was enjoying her attentions.

"The CIA."

There were many more scars on his chest, legs and arms but she didn't have a chance to ask him about them. Instead he drew her head up and began kissing her fervently. She returned his kisses until they both broke away panting for air.

"What did I do to deserve you my lovely Kat?"

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"I thought that my scars would bother you. That you might find them... repulsive."

"Oh John! How could I? They are the marks of a warrior, someone who fights for others and at great personal sacrifice. I admire you. There is no way you'd ever repulse me. "

He just shook his head and spoke. "Well, if you can think of me like that, why can't you accept that I think you're absolutely beautiful?"

"Touche." She answered, reaching for a washcloth and some soap. She squeezed the body wash onto the rag and rubbed it together. She looked back up into John's eyes. "Let me wash you?" She asked.

He just nodded and she started with his hands, rubbing each finger separately with the washcloth. She moved up his arms to his shoulders, being careful of the stitches. As she rubbed the washcloth over his neck and down to his chest, he looked into her eyes, watching as she rubbed her washcloth covered hand over his scars. She really didn't seem to mind the way he looked and he was again amazed that he'd been lucky enough to findsomeone as special as she was.

Kat moved from his chest and grabbed a foot and started giggling. "My, what big feet you have, my dear!"

He laughed and gave her a mischievous look. "Well, you know what they say about men with big feet..."

"Well no, Mr. Reese, I don't believe I DO know what they say." She replied playfully.

"Come here and I'll show you.." He growled.

"And be accused of dereliction of duty? I hardly think so." She rubbed the washcloth over the bottom of his foot. She ran a nail up along the bottom as well and laughed when he jumped.

"Oh, so you think that's funny? Well let's see if you laugh at this my funny girl!" John grabbed a hold of her foot and pulled her towards him. As soon as she was close enough, he blew a raspberry on her foot and then grabbed her body and did the same to her neck, repeatedly.

"Stop, stop!" Kat tried to gasp out between giggles. "You...win...John!"

He immediately released her and she threw her arms around him and kissed him. "You may have won this time but..."

"Oh Kat, don't write checks your...ass can't cash." He said smiling and grabbing her bottom as he said it.

"Well, I have only a little more to wash, John, but I can't seem to find the washcloth."

"Hmmm...maybe it's under here?" He asked running his fingers from her bottom and around to the front of her thighs. "Nope. I don't feel it over on this side either." He said as he reached towards her side but brushed his knuckles against her nipple. "Hmmmm... Not in here either." He smiled, slipping two fingers inside of her."

"Oh!" She gasped. "Well I guess I'll just have to wash you with my hands instead." And then gasped again as he moved his fingers in and out of her.

Kat lathered her hands up as best she could with the distraction of his fingers and then she reached down into the water and grasped him in her hands. His shaft was already hard and when she gripped it, she could feel it buck in her hand. She began to move her hand up and down on him while her fingers gripped him snugly. As she repeatedly drew her hand up and down, the pad of her thumb rubbing the tip on the upstroke, John let out a moan. Kat took her other hand and cupped his balls, rolling them around gently in her palm while continuing the friction on his shaft.

"Oh God, Kat! You're amazing. But you... need to...stop...now. " He was breathing heavily. She pouted as his hands closed over hers but she allowed him to remove her hands and bring them up to his mouth to kiss.

"Why did you make me stop?" She asked puzzled.

"Because I want to come inside you, not in your hands." Kat felt a thrill of anticipation at those words. Damn! How did he always know how to say just the right thing to get her all hot and bothered? "And I still need to clean you up, my sweet. Turn around." He told her.

She did and as she eased backwards towards him, she could feel his erection teasing her behind and pushing against her lower back. She deliberately rubbed her hips back and forth, creating a little friction between the two of them.

"Kat." He said warningly.

"Alright, alright Mr. Killjoy."

"Oh Kat, I thought I'd shown you how much joy and pleasure I could give you. Apparently, you need a reminder." From somewhere in the tub, John produced the washcloth and he grabbed her arm, straightening it out. He ran the washcloth from her hand, up her arm and then he bent the arm, telling her to grab onto the back of his neck. He repeated the action and placed her other arm behind his neck as well. In order to hold onto him this way, Kat had to arch her body forward, causing her breasts to jut out in front of her.

John took full advantage of the new position and his hands covered her breasts, pinching and rolling her nipples between his fingers. He leaned his head forward and began to kiss her neck as well.

"Oh, John." She moaned as he squeezed and manipulated her nipples.

"So, you like this my Kat? Hmm? I think you do," He whispered in her ear. "You're practically purring... practically, but not...quite." One hand slipped down lower and he started to rub her between her legs. His skilled fingers found her sensitive bud and he started to rub and flick his fingers across her. It was all Kat could do to hang onto his neck as she gasped and moaned. Oh those damn fingers of his! She could feel the tension, the sensations in her body building and building. He must have felt it too because once again he whispered in her ear, "Purr for me, Kat. Come on, I want to hear you."

At that exact moment, he squeezed both her nipple and her clit and Kat heard herself calling his name over and over as she fell from that dizzying height he'd brought her to. As she slowly came down, she felt his arms around her, holding her close. She sighed and thought that there was no other place on Earth that she'd rather be.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I don't understand how you can possibly do that to me every time." She said softly. "I mean it's never...I'VE never..."

"You and I were meant to be together, sweetheart. That's why it's so good for BOTH of us." He leaned down and kissed her neck. "Hey, the water's getting cool. Are you ready to get out?"

She nodded and they both stood up. Instead of handing her a towel, he took one and started drying her off himself. Kat luxuriated in the feeling of someone taking care of her. It had been so long since she'd been able trust someone enough to give up control like that.

John quickly rubbed the towel over himself. "Hey! I wanted to do that for you." She frowned but reached for her clothes.

"Don't bother with those." He told her.

"Why?" She asked.

"I'd only have to take them off again in a minute." He explained and then scooped her up, carrying her in his arms from the bathroom to the bed. Kat felt herself blush at his words. Oh my, would the two of them never get enough of each other?

He dropped her on the bed and she laughed as she bounced for a second. He quickly joined her there and covered her lightly with his body.

"Mmmm. You feel so good." She murmured and began kissing him while allowing her hands to roam over his back.

She and John kissed deeply for several minutes and she felt him growing harder and harder against her. Deciding it was time to take matters into her own hands, she wrapped a leg around him and used the other as leverage to roll him over with her on top. She never would have been able to move him if he hadn't allowed her to and she smiled as their lips met and she ground her hips against him. He groaned and she thought it was so sexy that she did it again and again.

"Kat, I want to be inside you, NOW!" He forced out between clenched teeth.

She was more than happy to oblige him. She wrapped her hand around him and guided him to her entrance. She meant to slowly lower herself down onto him, but he had other ideas. He thrust his hips up sinking himself into her. She cried out in surprise. He was able to go so deep this way! She enjoyed the sensation of being so exquisitely full before she started moving up and down on him. Each time she came down on him, he thrust sharply upwards burying himself deeper. Kat leaned backwards, trying to absorb the feeling of fullness and friction against her walls.

John looked up and watched her as she moved up and down on him, her head thrown back and obviously enjoying herself. Every time he thrust up into her, she whimpered a little and her large, full breasts bounced erotically with the upward force of his thrust. He couldn't help himself and reached up to fondle her, loving the resulting moan he elicited from her. They continued on like this for several minutes, thrusting and coming together, then pulling away only to repeat the rhythm. He felt himself growing harder and harder, feeling like he was about to explode, but first he reached down between their bodies and rubbed her clit. They both felt the tremors beginning at the same time and they called each other's names as the waves of pleasure took over them.

Feeling boneless and spent, Kat collapsed on his chest and wrapped her arms around him as he did the same. They fell asleep holding each other close.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kat woke first and shifted off John. He felt her move and gripped her tighter so that she couldn't leave. Kat snuggled up close to his side and rested her head on his chest. She traced circles over his smooth skin with her fingers while his hand slid up and down her skin. She thought that perhaps now might be a good time to bring up what she'd heard last night while he was sleeping.

"John?" She started, while keeping her eyes firmly planted on his chest. "Who's Harold?" The fingers that had been rubbing up and down her back stopped. She also felt his heart beat faster against her ear.

"Why do you ask?" He finally said.

"Well last night, you...I think you were having a bad dream. You were tossing around and you kept mentioning his name."

John sighed, not sure anymore why it mattered whether or not he told her about Harold,especially if she was going to be a part of his life. He just needed to keep the Machine's existence a secret. Knowing about it would put her in too much danger and he was not going to lose her.

"Harold is my boss...and my friend. A week and a half ago, he was taken by a very deceitful, evil woman because she thought he had information that she wanted." Kat gasped at hearing that his boss had been kidnapped. That put an even different spin on what John did. 'If his boss could be taken...what about John?' Her stomach churned nervously as he continued.

"I should have anticipated it. I... I should've seen it." He turned his head away from her to gaze out the window. She lay there studying his profile and she thought she might have seen his eyes moisten, but then he blinked and it was gone. "I've been trying to locate him ever since then, while still keeping up with my job."

"So...what is that job, John, now that you aren't working for the CIA?"

He sighed before responding. "I get information about people who are going to be in trouble and I do my best to help them or if they are the ones who are causing the trouble, I take care of it."

"What do you mean? What kind of information and just how do you 'take care of it'?" She had so many questions but those were the two that were most important at this point.. He turned his head back from the window to look at her.

"Well, I usually turn them over to the police." His wording was not lost on her. She would have to ask what happened when the situation wasn't usual, and what happened when they weren't turned over to the police. "And I'm sorry Kat but I can't tell you where I get my information. It's not my secret to tell. You can think of it as being 'classified'."

John watched her as her eyes honed in on a spot on his shoulder. He could practically see the wheels spinning in her head. He hoped that what he'd told her wouldn't scare her away. Hell, he hadn't even told her the frightening parts of his life...and he might not. Ever. He wasn't sure that he could tell anyone all of what he'd done, not even Finch, and Finch was at least privy to some of the things he'd done. That line of thought steered him back to his employer... his friend and what he could possibly be going through while being held by that psychopath, "Root". And he was convinced now that she was definitely a psychopath. No one, who goes to that much trouble and brings potential harm to themselves just to get someone out in the open, could possibly be sane. He would get Harold back. He didn't know how, but he owed it to him; the man had literally saved his life…more than once.

He'd been able to gather several bits of information since Harold had been taken but nothing concrete enough to set out actively tracking anything down yet. He knew he couldn't go off half-cocked. Root was too smart to leave anything to chance. Wherever she had Harold, it was going to take some time to find him. John wondered to himself if he was going to eventually need to get Carter and Fusco involved in the 'rescue operation'. He couldn't see any reason _not _to involve them; they both knew about each other now, they both knew Harold... He made the decision then and there to contact them both and let them know what was going on…but what to do about Kat in the meantime? Someone was obviously trying very hard to kill her, which sent him into a silent internal rage. How dare someone try to hurt her; this sweet woman..._his_ sweet woman, he corrected himself. It didn't matter that he'd only had her for one night now...no, she was his. He felt it down to his very marrow. He wasn't ready to let her know that yet though. But, that didn't mean that he couldn't _show_ her. He felt his lips pull up in a smirk as he thought about all the ways he could show her.

Kat rose up and propped her cheek on her palm and stared at him. "What are you grinnin' at?" She asked, not able to stop from smiling back at him. That grin of his was absolutely infectious.

"You..." His eyes darkened and his chin lowered so that he was now looking at her through his dark lashes lending to an almost wicked look.

"Oh..." She breathed. It was the only thing she was able to get out before he sprang up and had her rolled over onto her back. He was on top of her pressing her down firmly onto the mattress and then his mouth was feasting on hers. She moaned into his mouth which just spurred him on further. He moved her arms above her head and held them there between one of his hands while he slid the other down to push her knee up allowing him full access to her. She was writhing beneath him, her back arching up to press her chest into his while her hips pushed up into his in a rhythm so wanton and unrestrained that he nearly came before he'd even entered her. He pulled his lips from hers and fought to control his body's insatiable reactions to this woman. She whimpered when he stopped kissing her but he immediately buried his head in the crook of her neck and inhaled deeply. Her scent was incredible; it was a mix of some kind of flower...maybe rose, soap, and something else that was all Kat. His tongue snaked out and tasted her skin. She tasted slightly salty from the light sheen of sweat that had begun to show on her skin.

"Oh...John." She gasped. She struggled against his hand that held hers and he let her go immediately. Her hands wrapped quickly around his back and her short nails started raking across his skin. "Please..." She begged, while lifting her hips to press against his. "I want you...inside me...now. He needed no further encouragement. He thrust into her quickly at the same time that she screamed out; "Please!"

He felt the sharp sting of her nails on his skin as he simultaneously felt the sweet sensation of sliding into her slick, tight heat. The combination was intensely erotic and he found himself once again fighting back the urge to let himself find that satisfying release but he enjoyed the way she cried out when she came, too much to miss out on hearing it again. He wrapped his lips around the skin at the base of her shoulder and sunk his teeth gently into her skin. She keened and arched her back so far off of the bed that he thought she might buck him off her. Thankfully she didn't unseat him and he didn't have to contain himself for long after that. He pounded fiercely into her compliant and more than willing body. When she screamed out his name and threw her head back against the pillow, he finally allowed himself to follow her over the edge. After several, much more gentle thrusts, he breathed out her name next to her ear and he felt her shiver against him while her insides contracted around him with an intensity that had him moaning.

"God, Kat...you're going to drive me insane...or kill me, one or the other."

"I opt for the first choice, if those are the only two being offered." Her lips moved against his shoulder. He allowed himself to collapse onto his forearms resting on either side of her chest. He knew she could take his full weight but he wanted to be a little above her so that he could look into her eyes but she currently had them closed. A satisfied smile graced her pretty mouth. It was practically calling out to him, begging to be kissed, or licked, or...fed. All thoughts of Harold, Carter, Fusco, and the Machine were momentarily forgotten as his next plan for her was lasciviously forming in his head. He leaned down and ran his tongue lightly from the tip of her chin up to the bottom of her mouth. Her smile grew but her eyes stayed closed. He wanted her looking at him...now. He did the only thing he could to get her full attention...nothing at all. He laid there, looking down at her, but unmoving. He watched her throat move as she swallowed. He wanted so badly to lean down and nip her there but he restrained himself. Her lips parted and he could feel the air from her mouth tickle his chin. Her breathing was still unsteady from their exertions and her breath cascaded down his throat in waves. After another minute or so of just simply watching her and studying her face her eyes opened languidly.

"Finally." He whispered. "I was wondering if you were ever going to wake up."

She smiled up at him as she answered. "Asleep? I can't do _this_..." He felt her contract her inner walls contract around him and then release. "...while I'm asleep."

His breath caught in his throat as he felt his cock twitch inside of her in response.

He growled and leaned down to take her lower lip gently in his teeth. He flicked his tongue against it teasingly and then pulled back slowly letting it slip back out again. She groaned and tightened around him again.

"Oh Kat...I'm thinking you could probably do that in your sleep." She grinned and did 'that' again. Then he slid his arms under her back and rolled them over so that she was on top of him, impaled fully while straddling his hips. "Maybe we'll have to find out..."


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9 **

Their three days together were cut short when Kat received a call from Mario the next morning. Unlike the time that Liam had called her, this time there had actually been a break-in at the site. Mario apologized profusely on the phone. It had been on his watch that it had happened and he felt totally responsible, even though it had been after hours, and there had been nothing he could do. Frank, the site guard, had called in sick that evening. Mario had only left the site long enough to go visit his daughter, who had just given birth to his first grandchild. While she was royally pissed that there had been a break-in, she wasn't at all blaming Mario.

John watched as Kat took the news from the foreman in stride. He was impressed with her calm demeanor. It was so much different from the time when that asshole Liam had called her about the fake break-in while they had been at the coffee shop. John liked to think that it was because she was more comfortable now that he was with her, but brushed that thought aside since he had been with her during the last call from Liam... She hung up the phone, closed her eyes and sighed.

"I have to go down to the site."

"I heard, but Kat, WE have to go." He saw her start to object so he quickly continued before she could interrupt. "I can't let you go alone. There's still someone out there that wants to hurt you and I won't allow that." 'Not while I'm still breathing', he thought "Look, sweetheart...don't take it as me being overprotective, please. Just know that I do this for a living, and I'm very good at my job..."

Her dark blue eyes met his light blue ones. "Your job..." Her eyes narrowed but there was a smirk playing at her lips. "How many women have you slept with for your job, John?"

His answer was low and his eyes turned cold. "None, Kat...ever. Not even when I was doing..._other_ questionable things, I never did _that_."

"John...I...I didn't..." He watched her stammer before she tried to sit up and pull away from him. He grabbed her and pulled her back down against him. She struggled against him until his lips were pressed against hers. She whimpered when he gently nipped her lower lip and then slowly moved back.

"Please understand. You're not a job to me. You're..." He reached out and stroked her face gently. How the hell could he explain to her what he felt...hell he wasn't even sure _he_ knew exactly what he was feeling yet. What he _did_ know was that he hadn't felt like this since...well, ever, but he wasn't sure he wanted to think about that yet either. "...so much more...I've never brought _anyone_..." He put his fingers under her chin and lifted so that she was looking up at him. "..._anyone_ here, or to my previous place either. I haven't..._been_ with a woman in... a very long time." This time it was John's eyes that turned down from Kat's. Then he felt her hand on his face gently lifting upwards in a mirror image of what he had done to her several times now.

"While I find that incredibly hard to believe, it also makes me extremely happy."

His eyes met hers with a look of confusion. "Why?" He whispered.

"Why would I be happy about you _not_ bringing another woman home to your place... or with you not being with another woman for quite a while? Uh...what's _not_ to be happy about?"

He wanted so badly to say the words that he was thinking at that moment, that there would never be anyone else but her, ever again, but he was afraid that was too much, too quick and it would scare her away. He leaned over and kissed her and then yanked the sheet off of them both as he bounded out of bed. "Come on sleeping beauty, you need to get down to the site."

The sight of her incredulous look coupled with her naked body sprawled out on his bed beckoned to him like a siren's call but he knew that she had things to do and that when work calls, you answer. Sighing, Kat got up and quickly headed to the bathroom. Her head knew he was right but her body obviously had other things it wanted.

John grabbed a suit out of his closet and started getting dressed. Kat came walking out of the bathroom wrapped in a towel. "John, what am I going to tell the crew when I show up with some gorgeous, tall guy in a suit?"

He just shrugged and gave her a smirk."Let's go sweetheart...You wouldn't want your bodyguard showing up late for his first day on the job, would you?"

Her head tilted to the side. "Bodyguard, huh? Is that how we're going to explain you?"

He flashed her a quick grin. "You don't think I'll blend in?

"Uhhh no. And...you're going to get filthy if you're going to be following me around the site all day."

"I'm not afraid to get a little dirty for you, Kat." His grin turned into a wicked smile as he started to unbutton his dress shirt.

"Oh...well then, we might have to see how dirty you can get."He watched her face turn bright red as she realized what she'd just said. Then, almost on cue her eyes turned down and she turned to walk back into the bathroom. He chuckled and went to go find a pair of jeans and a shirt to wear.

They decided to pick up breakfast at one of the coffee shops on the way to the site. They also ended up taking Finch's Lincoln rather than walking; John had made that decision final by showing her his weapons stash for 'emergencies' hidden in the trunk. Granted, he didn't see them being needed at the site today but one never knew when an emergency might pop up. And he was too used to planning for all contingencies to stop now.She acquiesced to what he thought was extremely good logic and he grinned at her as he opened the passenger side door for her.

When he got in she was giggling and shaking her head. "What's so funny?" He asked.

"You...and that grin. God John, that grin; it could launch a thousand ships. Pardon the cheesy literary reference."

"My grin huh...you mean it's not my charming personality that makes you smile like that?" He felt the grin turn into a full fledged smile as he looked over at her. Her face was positively glowing and the smile that graced her mouth made him feel weak. He wanted to lean over and kiss her so badly but he knew that if he did they'd never make it to her work.

"Oh yeah...your grin, your personality, your..." She breathed out and he watched her eyes flicker down to his mouth. "John...can we go now...please?"

"Yeah." He tore his eyes away from her so that he could start the car and get them on their way before they accosted each otherright there in the car. Apparently she was having just as much of a problem controlling herself around him as he was around her. The thought brought a smile to his face as he drove down the street towards the coffee shop.

***********************************************

Kat sat next to John trying to glance over at him without being too obvious about it. She wasn't sure how well she was pulling it off but she was almost to the point that she didn't care. The man was pure sex in a suit...only, today there was no suit. He had changed out of his suit into a pair of blue jeans and a dark blue polo. Not exactly the casual dress she was used to seeing, but a little bit more practical than the suit. But he was still drop dead gorgeous.

She watched him as his eyes flickered off to the left, right, forward, and down over and over again. He was watching everything, his eyes on the lookout for absolutely anything out of the ordinary. Kat remembered her brother's friend Jack, who was a sniper in the Army. He was allways talking about how they had to be ultra observant of absolutely everything. She'd noticed that John was always watching everything, even the night they'd met, his eyes were always searching. She wondered if that's what he had done for the CIA...she wasn't sure if she could ask him, or if he could tell her but it might explain some things.

He caught her looking over at him and he took his eyes off the road for just a second to look over at her. Kat quickly looked away out her window. The car slowed and they pulled up in front of the coffee shop. John got out and came around to open the car door for her. She thought she could get used to this! She stepped out and John closed the door, and then she felt his hand on the small of her back. It reminded her of that night at the coffee shop where they'd had their first 'date'. She'd loved when he'd done it then and she loved it even more now. He opened the door for her into the coffee shop and followed her in. They walked up to the little counter where the barista welcomed them and asked what they would like to order.

They each ordered their coffee, John got a regular coffee to go and Kat got her usual zebra mocha. They walked back out to the car and once again he opened her door for her. 'Yeah', she could definitely get used to this. She thought back to past dates that she'd been on...this wasn't even a date and she still couldn't remember ever being treated with such respect. She glanced over at him and looked down at his arm resting on the center console between them. She reached over and took his hand in hers, laying her arm right next to his. He looked over at her and smiled as he threaded his fingers through hers. She sighed and went back to watching the concrete scenery, the little bodegas, and all the pedestrians that they passed by.

They rode in comfortable silence the rest of the way to the site. When John pulled up to Kat's office he gently removed his hand from hers to shift the car into park and turned the key off. He turned to face her and took her hand again. "So Kat...I'm your bodyguard. I go everywhere you go...no questions, no arguments, ok? That's the deal with you being able to be here. I know it sounds overbearing, "

"Yeah...that's what I'm tellin' the crew. But, honestly..._everywhere_ John?"

"Everywhere. I'm not taking any chances until I find out who's trying to hurt you Kat." He reached over and ran the back of his hand down her cheek. He still inwardly cringed every time he looked at the cuts on her face. Some of the places on her cheek and eye were starting to discolor and take on the look of a bruise and it appeared to be painful but she didn't complain about it. He noticed that she'd actually done quite a good job at hiding it with her makeup this morning. Not for the first time, he wished that he could go back and kill that bastard Liam before he'd been able to touch her. She shouldn't even be in the position to _have_ to hide things like that with makeup.

"Promise me you won't let your pride get in the way and try to go off by yourself. I know this is your place of business and I respect that a great deal, but your safety is my number one concern here, above all need to keep up appearances. I'm here to keep you safe..." He paused and Kat watched his eyes darken as he inhaled deeply. "...and hopefully I'll be able to keep my hands off of you long enough to keep your reputation intact." His fingers slid under her chin and his thumb came up to trace lightly across her lips. Her eyes unwillingly closed as her body's reaction to his touch made it impossible for her to function properly.

Her mouth dropped open and he heard a soft mewling sound that was music to his ears. She was so incredibly responsive to him. Just the slightest touch and it was like he was pressed up against her again. He felt a twitch between his legs and knew that he needed to take a proverbial step back so that he could control himself. His hand left her face reluctantly and closed fleetingly around her hand. "You ready to go?"

Her eyes opened slowly and rose to meet his. "No...but unfortunately, I have to."

He squeezed her hand lightly before releasing her and turning to get out of the car. This time Kat didn't wait for him to come around and open her door. She wanted to keep up appearances that he was there as her bodyguard, not her date.

She watched John scan the site quickly then he asked her to follow him around to the back of her office to check for anything out of the ordinary. When he found nothing, he let her know that he wanted to check out the inside first before she went in. Kat personally thought that he was being overly cautious but she didn't argue with him. John walked up the steps to the portable trailer and Kat's eyes followed him, watching how the fabric of the jeans tightened teasingly across his thighs and butt as he climbed the ramp. She fought the urge to follow him up the steps and wrap her hands around what she now knew, quite intimately, that the material was hiding. She almost moaned at the thoughts that rushed to her mind because she knew it would be hours before they could come to fruition.

Kat sighed and followed him up the steps as he opened the door and slipped inside. John held up his hand as she pulled the door open wider. She didn't expect him to find anything or anyone in here, it wasn't like the area was large enough for someone to hide. The only place she could think of that someone could conceivably hide would be in the makeshift closet where she kept her clothes and a spare handgun in a locked safe box. She watched John's head turn from side to side scanning absolutely everything and then he opened the closet. When he found nothing he waved her in. She walked in and closed the door behind her and twisted the lock. Before John turned back around to face her, Kat's eyes were drawn to the back of his neck where his hairline came to a sharp point. She wasn't sure why she found that so incredibly sexy, but she did, and it just spawned more thoughts... She pictured him lying naked across his bed with her straddling his back, running her fingers down through his short salt and pepper hair, right down through that point. Then she leaned down and ran her tongue up the length of his spine. Kat wasn't able to suppress the moan that was ripped from her throat. The sound alerted John, he spun around and started walking towards her.

"What's wrong?" The concern etched across his forehead made her embarrassed for not controlling her, 'incredibly inappropriate during work', thoughts.

"Nothing, I'm sorry. It's nothing..." Her eyes dropped to the floor, but not before John caught the look in them. He was across the room,standing in front of her in three long strides.

"Well well Kat..." His voice was so low and rough as he brought his hands up to cradle her face and then threaded them back through her hair. "We just got here...and I'm not even dirty yet."

Her breath caught in her throat and the fire between her legs ignited instantly. "Oh...this was...a mistake." She whispered, shaking her head.

"What?...Why?" He asked. A look of confusion, and then hurt, flickered across his face as he stepped back from her.

She turned her eyes up to meet his without lifting her chin and grabbed his hands before he could retreat any further. "Because... I don't think there's any way I'm going to be able to keep my hands off of you all day."

Now it was John's turn to be floored. The look of hurt was quickly replaced by a look of lust filled hunger. His eyes darkened and it was only a matter of seconds before he had one hand wrapped around the back of her head, and the other around the small of her back. He pulled her against him so hard that it took her breath away. His mouth descended on hers with the force of a starving man diving into his first meal. Kat whimpered as she felt her back meet the wall that John now had her firmly pressed against. She could feel him harden against her almost immediately. She moaned and her head dropped back. "Ohh... John..." She breathed.

"Say it again...Kat...say it again, please."

She clawed at his shirt desperately, pulled it out of his jeans. She lifted it up, her fingers quickly finding his skin. His lips went to work along her jaw, then moved down her neck, nipping lightly as he went. She cried out when his teeth were a little more exuberant than he'd intended. His tongue snaked out to soothe the skin where he'd nipped her. "Say it..." He thrust his hips against her, pushing her harder against the wall. "...again." He shoved her legs apart with one of his knees and then pushed it up firmly between her legs.

"Oh!" She cried out. Her arms slid up under his shirt and wrapped around his back. She pulled him closer and lifted her lips to his ear. "John..." Her voice was soft and breathy and it made him so hard that he thought he might come right there.

They both jumped when someone started pounding loudly on the door to her office.

"Kat! Kat are you OK in there?"

She immediately relaxed a little when she recognized the voice of the person on the other side started speaking.

She took a deep breath and answered. "Yeah Mario! I'm fine...I'll be out in a minute."

She straightened her hair and pulled her shirt down flat and looked up at John with a questioning look. They were both breathing heavily but John was able to get his under control fairly quickly. She was amazed at his power over his own body. He straightened his shirt and tucked it into his jeans. When he nodded she stepped away from him and walked over to the door. She took a deep breath through her nose and let it out through her mouth before reaching for the knob and unlocking it. She opened the door and was face to face with her foreman Mario. The look of worry on his face warmed her heart immensely. She smiled and welcomed the older man in. He came to a stop when he saw John standing by the back side of the office.

She decided introductions were the first order of business. "Mario, this is John. He's going to be with me for the next few...well, I'm not sure how long, while I'm at the site. I've hired him as my bodyguard at the suggestion of one of the detectives that was here after...you know, after what happened the other night."

Mario's eyes went from skeptically raking over John's tall form to quiet acceptance. "Well, I'm glad you're taking precautions but... with Liam gone..."

"We know someone hired him Mario...we just don't know who yet."

"But...but why?"

"We don't know that either..."

"Well, I'm glad you found someone to watch your back then." Mario stepped up to John and extended his hand. They shook hands and then Mario turned back to Kat.

"Ya know, this break in comes at an awfully convenient time, especially after what happened the other night. You think they might be connected?"

John's brow rose at Mario's astute observation. "Why yes, it does seem very odd, doesn't it?"

"Well, you let me know if you need anything at all." He said to John and then he turned to address Kat. "I've talked with the police, let them know what was taken, and they said they'd contact you if they need anything further."

"What _was _taken Mario?"

"One of the company trucks. It wasn't one with any tools in the chest but still... They also took the copper in the first shed."

"Shit." She mumbled. "Well, it could've been worse. They could have taken any of the larger pieces of equipment and there's far more copper stored in the shed out by the West end of the site."

Mario shook his head. "Yeah, that is kind of odd huh?"

"How 'bout if we go take a look at where everything was taken from?" John directed his question at Mario.

"Sure. You ready to go now?"

John looked over at Kat and she nodded. "Let's go."

********************************************

Kat and John walked the entire site with Mario while John spent the time looking for things that might clue him into who had robbed the site. He was also looking to see if there was any evidence that the hit on Kat had anything to do with the robbery but so far he had come up with nothing. Whoever had robbed the site was clean...obviously professional, a hell of a lot better than that bastard Liam had been. That worried John because whoever was behind this was evolving their tactics to better suit their needs of hurting Kat. The pure animalistic rage that he felt at that thought scared him. He had to keep a clear head so that he didn't get distracted by his emotions. It had happened once before and he'd be damned if he would let it happen again. He would go to the ends of the earth, go to any lengths, _do_ anything to protect her..._Anything_.

While they walked through the site, John familiarized himself with the layout, entrances, possible exits, and places where anyone could hide. As they walked, Kat was telling him about the various stages of the building that they were currently working on. It was going to be a clinic that would service the community, along with offering free health services for those that didn't have health insurance. She had bid low on the project so that she could work directly with the group that was in charge of the project. Her excitement about the project shone through as she spoke about it. And he could tell how passionate she was about wanting to help by taking on the project for so much less than her competitors would have. It would end up saving the group loads of money in the long run. The amount of money she was saving them would allow that money to be used to purchase several more pieces of medical equipment that they would have had to waited to purchase. They would have had to depend on paying for them through private sector donations.

John wondered again who the hell would want to hurt Kat. She was such a good person. But then again... Something clicked. He made the decision to look up all of the other companies, that had submitted bids on the job, when he got back to his apartment. Maybe one of them had been so upset by losing the bid that they were trying to exact revenge on her now. The anger was returning fast and hard, he tamped it down with everything that he had.

"John?" Kat's voice calling his name caught his attention.

He looked over at her. She was maybe fifteen feet away from him, and he had no idea how she had been able to get that far from him, without his noticing. She had a worried expression on her face which immediately put him on high alert. His eyes scanned the perimeter quickly and thoroughly. His hand shot back to finger his Sig that was tucked firmly in the waistband at the small of his back.

"What's wrong?" He asked. His voice was low and hard. He continued to scan everything around them as he walked quickly towards her.

Kat tilted her head to the side and her look of worry turned to confusion. "That's what I just asked you, John."

When he reached her side, he stood as close as he could directly in front of her. His protective stance was meant to warn anyone within their sight to stay back.

"What do you mean? You looked worried. You said my name. Did you see something?"

Kat's eyes took in John's eye movements and his hand at his back, where she knew he kept his Sig, and that started to worry her now. His body was so tense and his hard expression wasn't easing up.

"I...I said your name because you had stopped dead and you looked...really angry.

He took a slow deep breath and she watched as his shoulders dropped as he visibly relaxed. "No, there's nothing wrong. I'm sorry I worried you. I was...thinking about...it's nothing." He raised his hand to her face and ran his thumb along her cheek once. His voice lowered even further to almost a whisper. "I'm sorry." He dropped his hand quickly, she assumed, not to make a scene... just in case there were still any crew members around.

She reached out and squeezed his arm. "It's alright." And then she smiled up at him. "Hey, it's almost time for the crew to take off. I've got some paperwork I have to get done before I leave."

He took another deep breath and gave her a small smile. "OK, let's get you back to your office then. The sooner you get that done, the sooner we can get to the market and get what I need to make our dinner."

Kat's brows rose. "You're...making me dinner? Really?"

John's head nodded slowly. "Oh yes. You've worked all day, it's the least I could do." She could have sworn she saw a wicked look flash across his face, but it disappeared as quickly as it had appeared.

"Ooo K. That sounds...mmmm...promising."

"Yes..." He drew the word out and Kat thought she had never heard that word sound so sensual in her life. "...it is definitely...promising."

This time she did see the wicked gleam in his eye and she shuddered in anticipation of what was to come later that evening..._after _dinner.

"Well then...let's get back so I can get that pesky paperwork done."

"Mmm hmmm. Let's..."

She smirked as they walked side by side back to her office.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

When they got back to John's loft, he deposited the bags of groceries on the counter. As they began to put them away, Kat learned where he kept everything in his cupboards. Not that there WAS a whole lot, but she loved an organized living space and John's definitely was that. In the process of unloading the bags, their hands often brushed each other's as they reached into the bags at the same time. A few times, John pushed up against her from behind as they both reached to put an item in the same cupboard. Each and every time that happened, Kat could feel his hardness through his pants as it pressed against her behind. She kept trying to turn around but he pulled away before she could make any type of contact. It became more and more frustrating. After it happened for a fifth time, Kat had to stop and catch her breath. She was so turned on by all his little touches and she knew it was deliberate. She just couldn't understand WHY he was denying her more all of a sudden.

"I hope you don't mind, but I thought we'd have a rather light supper tonight." He said to her, not commenting at all on her breathless state. That fact alone told her that he knew what he was doing. He was normally ultra-observant of her and her moods.

Kat's eyes narrowed and she said in as calm a voice as she could muster. "No, of course not. What did you have in mind?"

"Just some soup and a chicken Caesar salad. I have something special in mind for dessert and it would be a shame to fill up too soon." Kat didn't miss the look in his eyes as he mentioned the special dessert.

"Would you like some help with that?" She asked, sidling up to him and licking her lips. This time he didn't move away, probably because he was too absorbed in watching her tongue flick out of her mouth.

"Help with what?" He asked distractedly.

"With this." She said just as she cupped the bulge she could see straining at his zipper.

"Ah, Kat! You are such a temptress." He sighed and pulled away. "But I think I should help you practice keeping your self-control. There were several times at work that I thought for sure I was going to have to tie you up to keep your hands off me." He was grinning at her now, especially when he saw her pout. "Now come give me a kiss before I start dinner." John reached his hands out to her and cupped her face, his lips moving sweetly against hers. Just as she started to fully participate, he pulled away and smiled at her groan of frustration. "Oh, there IS something that you could do to help me make dinner, after all."

"What?" She asked, willing to do anything if it meant they could eat and then go to bed quicker.

"Take off your clothes."

"Wha...what?" She gulped.

"Take off your clothes." He repeated. "You never know, it might motivate me to cook faster." He gave her a naughty grin. "Just take your clothes off and sit at one of the stools and talk to me as I work."

Kat couldn't believe what he was asking her to do. He ACTUALLY wanted her to sit there in front of him, completely naked? The idea made her a bit self-conscious but even more so, she found it a bit of a turn on, if she was being honest with herself.

"Well, um.. only if YOU are naked too." She challenged him. "Fair's fair."

John laughed at that and said, "The woman has a point. How about we compromise? I'll get undressed AFTER I finish cooking. Heat and naked skin aren't really a good combination."

Kat gulped once more and nodded, looking downward and blushing. She wasn't sure if she was going to love his 'lesson' on self-control, or self-combust before it was over. She looked up to find him standing there, expectantly.

"Kat."

"Yes?"

"I'm waiting."

Blushing an even deeper shade of red, Kat stood up to take her socks and shoes off first. She saw that he was watching her intently and an idea came to her. Perhaps it was time to test HIS self-control? Kat changed her mind about what to take off first. She used her feet to take the opposite shoe off of her foot but left her socks on. She slipped her arms out of her sleeves as well as her bra straps. Reaching behind herself, she unclasped her bra and pulled it out from under her shirt, slipping her arms back into the sleeves. She held up her bra for a second and then dropped it on the floor next to her. She smiled inwardly as his eyes followed it down to the floor. When he looked back at her, she locked eyes with him and began to slowly unbutton her shirt. She watched as his eyes followed the progress of her fingers and she once again smiled as he shifted his weight from one foot to another, obviously trying to ease the discomfort he must be experiencing, if the tenting of his pants was any indication. When she finished with the buttons, she left her shirt on. It gaped open a little as she moved, giving just a hint of her bare breasts underneath. She reached for the buttons on her jeans and pushed them over her hips and down her legs, her unbound breasts swaying a little with her movement. John's eyes took on a much more intense look as she stepped out of the jeans where they'd pooled on the floor.

She used the opportunity to walk a few steps closer to him and then her hands grasped her panties on either side of her hips. She saw his throat clench as he swallowed and she almost laughed out loud. Now he was feeling a little bit of what she'd felt, she was sure. Besides, she still owed him for that one time he'd kissed her that first morning and then just walked away, leaving her all hot and bothered.

She slowly eased her panties down, wiggling her hips and causing her breasts to sway suggestively under her shirt. Once her panties were also pooled at her feet, she stepped out of those as well, once more stepping a few steps closer to him. She shrugged her shirt off of her shoulders, exposing herself completely to his gaze as it ran up and down her body. She took one more step closer and noticed his hands were drawn up into fists. She couldn't help but laugh out loud at that before turning her back on him and leaning over to take her socks off, her backside facing him only a foot or two away. She heard John growl low in his throat and she waited; expecting to feel his hands on her. After a minute of nothing, she straightened up and looked at him. He was still standing there, feet from her, but his eyes were closed, his entire body was rigid with his attempt to remain where he was.

"John?" She said softly.

"Yes?" He forced out through clenched teeth.

"I'm waiting."

His eyes flew open at that and she could see the desire for her burning in them. It made her feel so sexy, that he wanted her that badly. Yet he still didn't move to take her and she wondered where he was finding the strength to resist the pull of whatever it was that had them both breathing hard and burning for each other.

"Oh my beautiful Kat, you'll have to wait a bit longer I'm afraid." With a voice that was obviously tightly controlled, he told her to go and sit on the stool. She hesitated, torn between her desire for him and her promise to sit there and keep him company while he made dinner. "I won't touch you Kat...not ..yet." And he turned his back and began gathering a pot and the ingredients for their dinner.

Kat took a deep breath and walked back to the two stools situated at the counter top. She squirmed a little as the cool leather of the stool brushed up against her sex when she sat down. Watching as he put the soup on the stove to heat up and he rinsed the salad ingredients under water in the sink next to her, she marveled at the dichotomy that his hands represented. They were strong and ruthless when dealing with those who would hurt someone he was protecting but her body knew firsthand how gently and lovingly they could caress someone he... cared about? She thought he MUST care about her; considering all they had been through and the fact that he was still here with her. She knew she cared for him, quite deeply, actually. Should she tell him? Was this the time? What if he...? No, she decided, not yet. She didn't want to scare him away by revealing the intensity of her feelings for him. Not this early on.

"Penny for your thoughts?" He asked, watching various emotions play across her face. He was getting better at reading her facial expressions, and he could tell that whatever she was thinking about; had her worried.

"Nothing worth mentioning." She said, and quickly switched topics in her mind. "So I didn't realize you cooked much. You seem like a take-out kinda guy."

"What makes you say that?" He asked. He knew that something was troubling her, but decided that he'd ask her about it later.

"Um, could it be the stack of take-out menus in that box on the counter?" She laughed.

Her laugh was infectious and he smiled. "You got me. I don't usually have time to cook and I never have anyone to cook for."

His words brought a huge smile to her face and his breath was taken away as he once more marveled at her beauty. He still had a hard time accepting that a woman as beautiful, sweet, compassionate, and strong as Kat was; here of her own free will. Anxious to be sitting next to her, he gathered bowls from the cupboard and served up the soup and the salad he had mixed together. He brought the food around the corner of the island counter top to where the two stools were and she smiled her thanks at him.

He was just about to sit down when she said, "John, a promise is a promise."

He smirked at her. "So it is."

He reached up and pulled his shirt over his head, mussing his hair a little in the process. She had to restrain herself from messing it up further. She loved his hair when it was all messed up after they made love. He looked over at her as he started unbuttoning his pants. The look alone was enough to have her breasts aching and start a tingling feeling between her legs. As he pulled his pants and his boxer briefs down, his large, swollen erection sprang free and her eyes widened. She had to close her eyes as the tingling turned quickly to a deep ache. She wanted so badly to feel him inside of her NOW!

"Breathe, Kat." He spoke softly next to her, seating himself.

"John, I want..."

"I know, sweetheart." He interrupted her. "But...not...yet. Now, eat."

"John!" She groaned out.

"Eat Kat. I'll give you what you want...eventually."

Knowing how determined John could be at times, she knew that she wouldn't change his mind but how the hell was she supposed to eat when her stomach was full of butterflies?! She picked up a spoon and attempted to eat some soup. Looking over at him, she slowly licked the spoon with her tongue and then sucked on it a little. Damn if she was going to be the only one tied up in knots here!

John's eyes darkened as he watched Kat 'play' with her spoon. He knew that she was trying to get him to touch her, to take her in his arms and make love to her…and he wanted to, God he wanted to! But more than that, he wanted to make tonight an experience she wouldn't forget. He wanted to bind her to him in such a way that she wouldn't want to leave him. Ever. He still couldn't bring himself to tell her how he felt about her, but he certainly could show her. It hadn't been very long at all, but already he couldn't imagine his life without her.

He sat there next to Kat, admiring her naked body next to him and tried to force himself to eat just as he'd told her she must. He'd learned all sorts of calming techniques in the Army and more when working with the CIA and he had to employ every one of them as they sat there next to each other, the tension between them growing and growing. Finally, he saw her put her fork down after eating the majority of her salad. He inwardly sighed with relief, grateful that he'd finally be able to give in and touch her soon.

"Done?" He asked, trying to keep his voice calm and even; despite the fact that he was painfully hard and aching. She just nodded and he got up to clear the dishes. He thought about teasing her a bit more and washing them before he started with her, but just the thought of what he was about to do to her had him throbbing painfully.

"Well, I think I'm ready for some dessert. Are you?" He asked her. Again she just nodded and he could see her nipples tightening and puckering. 'Soon,' He thought. 'Soon I'll have you moaning, my sweet Kat.' He opened the fridge and removed a jar of chocolate sauce. "I think I'd like a little dessert buffet. I hope you won't object."

"Oh...okay." She answered, obviously not sure what he intended to do, her eyes drawn to the jar of chocolate.

"Come here." He said huskily. When she was standing in front of him, he lifted her up and placed her on the countertop of the island they had just eaten at. He grabbed a towel from a drawer and folded it up. "Lie back sweetheart."

"What? Here?" She asked in a high-pitched, surprised tone.

"Yes, here. I told you, I want some dessert now."

She gasped as what he was saying finally sunk in. "You…you want..._**me**_...for dessert?" She squeaked out the words.

He just smirked at her and gestured for her to lie down. She hesitated but then slowly reclined back onto the counter. He placed the folded up towel underneath her head and then placed a stool at the end of the counter where her feet were and one up closer to her on the side of the counter just below her shoulders. She watched every one of his movements through half-closed eyes. He could see her chest rising and falling as she took in shallow breaths and he smiled. He hadn't even touched her yet! Reaching over, he took the jar of chocolate sauce and dipped his finger in it. Her eyes widened as he stuck the finger in his mouth and sucked the chocolate off it.

"Hmm. Not...QUITE sweet enough for my tastes. I'll have to see what I can do about that." He dipped his finger into the jar once more but this time, he rubbed the cool chocolate over one of her nipples. He sat down on the stool next to her side and then dipped his head down and started licking the chocolate off her hardened peak.

As his rough tongue laved the chocolate off her nipple, Kat cried out from the sensation. She'd been waiting and waiting for him to touch her all evening but she hadn't imagined he'd be doing this! She would have never thought of him eating chocolate off of her body as she lie spread out on the counter like this, his dark hair contrasting with her white skin as he leaned over her with his head and drew her into his mouth greedily. It was the sexiest thing anyone had ever done to her!

John heard Kat's sighs and moans and he suckled her, pulling harder and then more softly, licking and then nipping. He kept up the sweet torment for several minutes and then raised his head and sighed.

"Ah, yes, that's MUCH more to my liking. Some people prefer whip cream for dessert but I find that chocolate tends to be thicker and my tongue has so much more time to enjoy its taste before it's all gone." He once more dipped his finger into the sauce and slathered her other nipple with the cool, thick chocolate. He bent his head down and began to lick it off, feeling Kat's fingers running through his hair as he played with her nipple with his mouth, teeth and tongue. Her moans became louder as he continually drew her into his mouth, harder and harder. He was determined to make her come just by playing with her breasts. His hand reached over to squeeze and roll the first nipple he had suckled. Only a couple, short minutes later, he felt her body tense underneath his hand and mouth. He drew her in even more deeply and squeezed her other nipple harder and suddenly she was calling his name, over and over as her climax took her.

When she had quieted somewhat below him, he raised his head and looked at her. She was lying there with her head thrown back and her breath coming in little gasps. His shaft jumped and reminded him that he'd yet to give it any release but he still wasn't done with her so he took his own deep breath and stood from the stool next to her. She rolled her head towards him, her eyes drawn to his erection and she reached out to grasp him but he pulled back.

"Ah, ah, self-control my sweet. I'm not done with my dessert quite yet."

"What? But I...you just..."

"No, I find I haven't gotten my fill of chocolate just yet. Surely you wouldn't leave me unsatisfied? That would be awfully cruel of you."

"No, of course not John but..."

"I thought not," he interrupted her and moved to the stool at the end of the counter by her feet. He grabbed her legs and slid her down until they were hanging off the counter and her rear was sitting just at the edge.

"John!" She gasped. "You can't be thinking of...not there!"

"Oh my yes. I love my chocolate flavored with you, my sweet." He looped her legs over his shoulders as he sat in the stool and once again reached his finger into the chocolate sauce. With one hand, he spread her lower lips open and found the small, round bundle of nerves at her center. He rubbed it with chocolate and bent his head down to begin licking it off her.

"Ah! John!" She cried out loudly. He gripped her thighs more firmly, spreading her wider and held her there while circling and licking her with his lips and tongue. She began to writhe underneath his mouth and he felt a new wetness spread from her sex. His tongue darted in and out, pressing on the upper wall of her hot sheath. He slipped an arm up her thigh so that he could rub her with his fingers as his tongue slipped into and out of her, again and again. He heard Kat panting and gasping out his name. He had to hold her in place as her hips and body began to writhe and buck more forcefully. He moved his tongue back to her clit and just as he felt her thighs tensing, he nipped and suckled her hard. She screamed and her body shook with the intensity of her climax. He kept at her though, wanting to bring her once again to a screaming release.

"No! No!" She cried out when he didn't stop. "Oh God, John! I...I can't...take this... I...AH!" and once again she went screaming over the edge. He quickly rose up and held her limp and trembling body upright, showering her neck with small kisses. Her breathing was just beginning to slow when he picked her up and sat back down on the stool, impaling her with his erection.

Her eyes flew open and Kat cried out as she felt him suddenly deep within her body. His arms reached around her back and his hands curled up over her shoulders, gripping her firmly as he withdrew and then pounded into her again. He withdrew once more and again pounded into her, his hands pushing her body down further onto his shaft. She whimpered and cried out, and he did it again, wanting to hear her reaction as he claimed her body as his. His and his alone.

He steadily increased the tempo as he kept thrusting up into her hot, tight sheath. He felt the tremors of her climax beginning and stopped moving. As the tremors died away, she mewled and then he once again began pounding into her. Twice more, he stopped her just as she was about to fall from the precipice. Each time when he began thrusting into her again, she whimpered and moaned as he started moving within her once more. Finally, even his control snapped and he drove into her over and over, hearing Kat calling out his name over and over. They both threw themselves over the edge at the same time and he shouted out his release as he pumped himself inside her.

As he came slowly back down, astounded at how intense his climax had been, he realized that Kat was no longer holding onto him. "Kat, sweetheart?" He spoke to her softly but got no answer and then he realized why. She'd passed out. He felt a swell of male satisfaction that he'd done that to her and stood up with her in his arms still managing to stay inside her warmth. He walked with her to the bed where he slowly lowered them both down. He withdrew from her then and she moaned a little and mumbled, "No, no more John...please..no..." All without opening her eyes.

He chuckled and kissed her lips before nestling in beside her, holding her tightly to him. "Sleep, my….my love. There's always tomorrow."

*******************************************************************************************************  
Kat opened her eyes as the light of false dawn was just showing through the large windows. She closed them again and listened to the sound of light snoring from the man next to her. His arm was thrown over her stomach and a leg was pinning down hers. She slowly tried to stretch without waking John but as she did so, she felt the muscles deep inside her, down _there_, tighten and pull. It wasn't painful…exactly, but she felt...well used? Well that didn't surprise her considering she'd made love with John more times since she'd met him than she had in the past four years! That thought had her remembering last night when _he'd._...and then_ she'd. _She felt herself blush. 'God! Did I really pass out?'

She lay there marveling at the turn of events that had brought John into her life. She knew she'd never be the same, having met a man as wonderful as John. He'd spoiled all other relationships for her. _That_ thought made her frown. She didn't want any other relationships and the thought of being with anyone else besides John was painful. 'Does that mean what I think?' She asked herself, at the moment not quite trusting herself to be thinking clearly. 'Am I falling in love with him? I can't be. We've only just met!. I couldn't possibly...' Then again, she'd always been a woman who knew her own mind, why would this be any different?

Kat reached over and with gentle fingers traced the jaw line of the face that had become so dear to her in such a short time. There was an answering smile from John but he didn't open his eyes as her fingers moved from his jaw, up the side of his face to his eyebrows. She smiled as her fingers moved from his eyebrows, down his straight nose to the tip that was just a bit upturned. When her fingers began moving back and forth over his lips, he opened his mouth slightly, took one of them in and sucked on it, teasing it with his tongue. It was as if he had a direct line to that core of pleasure between her legs as a thrill shot from her finger downwards. Her lips parted and she sucked in a gasp of air.

John woke to the warm presence of Kat next to him in his bed and her fingers touching his face. While he felt the expected surge of desire that her touch always brought, he also felt something deeper move within his chest. This woman; HIS beautiful, smart, strong woman, had firmly entrenched herself in his heart. He kept his eyes closed, savoring the feeling of contentment that thought produced until he heard her gasp as he suckled her finger. His eyes flew open and he saw right in front of him**;** those eyes of hers, those deep blue pools of desire, that pulled him in until he was drowning in his need for her. His hands reached over and he pulled her naked body up against his as she simultaneously brought her lips down on his. She threw a leg over him so that she could move her hips and her female center closer, cradling his growing erection. He plunged his tongue into her mouth and swallowed her resulting moan. She moved her hips a little, creating friction between their bodies where it counted the most. He groaned, flipped her over on her back, and in one swift motion, plunged himself into her depths.

"Ah, John!" She cried out, throwing her head back as she felt him fill her completely. She thrust her hips up to meet his as he withdrew and plunged in again. They set up a rhythm, their bodies separating and then quickly coming together, both wrapped up with the sensations of pleasure they were causing in each other. John once again felt the delicious sensation of Kat's sheath clenching around him as she came apart beneath him. He finally let himself go as her muscles squeezed him, draining every drop out of him in an explosive release. He rolled over next to her but wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close as they both lay panting.

"Hm. You can wake me up like that anytime, sweetheart." John finally managed to get out. Kat just chuckled and pushed herself up on her elbow and looked at him.

"Ditto soldier. Now that we've both had our morning workout, how about some breakfast before we get ready to go out to the site?"

"I suppose I better eat something if I'm going to keep up my strength. I have this demanding woman who keeps using up every bit of my energy, accosting me everywhere… in the bath, in bed, at work." He smirked at her.

"Oh? Accosting you is she? Perhaps you ought to tell her to keep her hands to herself?" As she said this, Kat reached down between them and cupped his manhood.

"Never." He growled out, leaning down and nipping her neck in reaction to what she was doing. "Besides, I'd be worried she might just tie me up then and have her way with me." Kat's eyes widened and then took on an intense and speculative look. "Not now, Kat." He laughed. "God! I've created an insatiable monster!" He rolled out of bed, reached his hand down and hauled her up out of bed and pulled her close for a quick kiss. He pulled back and said, "Now get going!" Andthen gave her a smack on the rear.

"Oh!" Kat squeaked at the unexpected slap on her behind. "John**...** fair warning, you do that again and you better be prepared for the consequences!"

John chuckled deeply and said, "And so should you." His voice was low and deep and then he made a lunge in her direction.

"Ah!" She squealed and darted out of reach. Still laughing, she asked "John may I borrow one of your shirts? I need to go pick up some more clothes today, if I'm going to be here longer than tomorrow."

She saw him sigh and quickly said, "I don't have to, then. I'll just go home today after work. You've got a lot of work yourself I'm sure."

He saw the momentary flicker of hurt in her eyes and realized she'd misinterpreted his gesture. "Kat, I don't mind if you help yourself to anything of mine, though I'd rather see you take OFF my shirt than put it on. And if you think I'm letting you out of my sight anytime soon, you're sadly mistaken. I'd keep you here with me indefinitely if I could."

Kat beamed a smile at him and opened the armoire, removed a white t-shirt, and put it on. It was just long enough to cover her behind. Shooting a smirk in John's direction, she sauntered over to the kitchen and leaned over, opening the fridge and looking inside.

As his t-shirt rose up her body, exposing her tight little ass when she leaned over, John had to close his eyes to keep himself in control and in place.

"An omelet ok?" Kat called. When she got no answer, she stood up and looked behind her to see John standing there with his eyes closed, his hands in fists, and a pained look on his face. "John?" She asked.

"Yes, fine." He said in a strangled tone of voice. "I'll...I'll be right back." And he strode quickly into the bathroom, closing the door.

Kat shrugged and started cracking the eggs. After five minutes, John suddenly reappeared at her side, startling her as his arms grasped her sides and pulled her backwards into him. "Oh!" She gasped and almost dropped the plates she had in her hands. "You are so quiet sometimes! Don't you..." She intended on scolding him but lost her train of thought when he began nuzzling her neck from behind. She could feel that he'd put on a barrier of clothes while in the bathroom.

"Mmm..if you don't want a burned breakfast Mr. Reese, you're going to have to keep your hands to yourself." She warned him teasingly. She felt him smile against her skin but then he released her and she took the plates to the stove and served up breakfast. "Can, you pour the coffee please?" She asked over her shoulder.

"Sure and thanks for making breakfast. I can't wait to taste your cooking. From the way Carter sounded the other night, you're a great chef." He answered.

She sat down on the stool next to him and said, "Well it was only fair, after all**,** you made dinner last night..." Kat trailed off and she could feel her face heating up at the thought of just what he had done last night. And suddenly she realized what he'd said. "Wait, from the way Carter SOUNDED the other night? Why don't I think you mean how she sounded _over the phone_ when you talked to her?" Kat gasped as another thought occurred to her. Her fork clattered to the plate and she exclaimed, "John tell me you did _not_ put a bug in my apartment!"

"No, I didn't." He answered her immediately and she sighed with relief but then widened her eyes at his next words. "I turned your cell into a microphone so I could listen and make sure that you were safe."

"John!" She practically yelled his name. "That's...that's..." She sputtered.

"That's keeping you safe." He said adamantly. "That's doing my job. I don't think you fully appreciate the danger you're in here, Kat. Someone…someone with quite a bit of money and power actually, has hired people to KILL you. I also don't think you appreciate the lengths I will go to, just to keep you safe. I will do ANYTHING to keep you from getting hurt again much less killed." He said fiercely, but then his eyes softened and he stood up and pulled her into an embrace. "In the short time we've known each other Kat, I've come to care for you...deeply. And the thought of something happening to you tears me up inside."

Kat was silent for so long that he stepped away and looked down at her. She had a look in her eyes that he'd never seen before. "Kat? Say something...please."

"I care for you too John. I'm just…so happy right now, hearing you say that... I... I can't imagine my life without you."

Hearing her say those words, hearing her echo what he was feeling, was music to his ears. He hugged her tightly and said, "It's the same for me Kat." They just stood there and held each other for several minutes, each comforted by the other's presence. They sat down and began eating again, smiling shyly at each other every few minutes.

"Are you done eating?" He finally asked, nodding to her almost empty plate. "I was hoping you'd join me in the shower? I'm rather sure I didn't get ALL the chocolate sauce off of youlast night."

She blushed and nodded. John took her hand and led her into the bathroom. Reaching over, he turned on the hot water and grabbed the hem of his t-shirt she was wearing and pulled it over her head. Standing there naked in front of him, she lowered her head shyly but looked up as he shrugged out of his robe. Kat sucked in her breath at the sight of him and reached out to put her hands on his chest. He let her touch him for a minute but then took one of her hands and lifted it towards his mouth, flicking his tongue over the soft skin on the inner side of her wrist. He then walked backwards into the shower and not releasing her hand, pulled her with him.

John turned her around so her back was against his chest and they both stood under the hot water, letting the heat and steam relax their muscles. After several minutes, he reached over and grabbed a bottle of shampoo, squeezing a little into his hand. Expecting him to start washing his hair, she pulled away to give him room, but he just pulled her back and began working the shampoo into _her _hair.

"Mmmm, that feels wonderful John." She tilted her head back and enjoyed the feeling of his fingers rubbing her head as he worked the shampoo in.

"We aim to please Ms. Greyson." After he rinsed the shampoo out of her hair, John put some body wash in his hand and began to massage Kat's neck and shoulders. As his fingers found and worked out the knots in her muscles, Kat moaned with pleasure. John smiled and moved from her shoulders down lower.

"Ah!" She moaned again as his hands cupped her breasts, soaped them up and played with her nipples.

"Hm. We need to make sure I got ALL that chocolate off you my dear, both here..." and he massaged her breasts once more and then moved lower, his hands diving between her legs and fondling her, "...and here."

Kat's legs almost buckled as his fingers circled her, rubbing and applying pressure in all the right places. He shifted, moving her under the water so that he could rinse the soap first off of her breasts, then moving his hands down allowing the water to careen down his arms to where his fingers moved rhythmically between her legs. While Kat thoroughly enjoyed what he was doing to her, she felt that it was high time that SHE gave HIM some enjoyment as well.

Twisting in his arms, Kat reached up and drew his mouth down to hers and kissed him deeply. Her hands slid down his chest and then dropped lower, grasping his hard shaft, where it jutted out proudly from his body. As her fingers curled around it, she felt him become even harder. She pulled her lips back from his and they curved into a mischievous smile before she lowered herself onto her knees. She held him just in front of her and looked up at him as she slowly captured him with her warm, wet mouth. Her tongue circled the tip several times, licking the slit in his penis as she tasted the bit of saltiness from his pre-cum. As she felt him lengthen and thicken in her mouth, she moved her mouth further down his shaft, tightening her lips around him to increase the feeling of friction. She almost smiled as she saw him throw his head back and push his hands out to brace himself against the sides of the shower. She sucked harder and pushed more of him into her mouth. As she pulled back, he lowered his hands to the top of her head and thrust himself back inside her mouth. She took that to mean that he wanted her to increase the tempo and she did, gripping him at the base of his penis and moving her hand back and forth in time with her mouth.

"Oh my God, Kat! That's amazing...but you need to stop or I'm going to come in your...AH!" He groaned out as she sucked harder and moved even faster. A minute later, she felt him tense and he grew even harder inside her mouth. She reached up and grabbed onto his hips and dug her fingers into him, pulling and pushing him in and out of her mouth. Then she felt him shudder and a warm saltiness hit the back of her throat. She continued to suck and massage him with her tongue, wanting to be sure he was fully satisfied before she stopped.

Finally, he spoke in a gruff voice and lay his hands on her head, trying to pull her mouth away from him, "Enough Kat. You've drained me...enough, sweetheart." She let him pull her away and up off her knees. "Thank you. That was incredible." He hugged her close. "But now I won't be able to make love to you. At least not just yet." He said sheepishly.

Kat laughed. "John, I'd hardly say you were neglecting me in that way! In fact, I've never been _so _satisfied in my life. Now let me wash the rest of you. I'd say THAT part of you is now thoroughly clean." She spent several more minutes returning the favor of washing his hair and body, thoroughly enjoying the fact that she was able to touch this handsome, loving man wherever she wished. Finally declaring them officially clean, he turned off the water and they stepped out of the shower. He handed her a fluffy towel and wrapped one around his own mid-section. They proceeded to finish getting dressed and ready for the day, both glancing at each other repeatedly and giving each other small smiles.

Kat was just putting the finishing touches on her make-up when John's phone rang….

TBC


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

John walked over and picked up his cell off of the counter and checked the caller ID display. He connected the call. "Good Morning Detective."

"Hey John, Just wanted to let ya know, I'm headin' over to Kat's apartment this morning to check things out."

"That sounds good. She had mentioned needing to go over there to pick up some more clothes. I was going to go with her after she'd finished at work tonight, but I'm glad you're going to check it out before I get over there with her."

"Yeah, no problem... Wait, she's gonna be stayin' with you until...?" Joss let the question hang there, just long enough for the silence to become uncomfortable for John.

"Until I'm sure it's safe for her to..." He didn't finish his sentence. He didn't like the sound of it, of what it implied; that she might leave, to return back to her own place.

"I want her kept safe too, John. I like her. She's... fiesty."

"Me too." Was his simple reply.

Joss wasn't sure if he was responding to the first or second part of what she'd said...or both. She decided to not press the issue at the moment. "I'll call ya after I've cleared it for you."

"Thanks. And Joss..."

She paused at his use of her given name. He didn't use it often but when he did, it made her feel like they'd moved one step closer to that level of friendship that would make working together even easier.

"Yeah?"

"Be careful."

"I will. Thanks."

She disconnected the call and shook her head. She pocketed her burner cell, holstered her Glock and got up from her desk to head out.

It took her about a half hour in the morning rush hour traffic to get over to Kat's apartment. She parallel parked her blue unmarked Chevy in a spot just down the street from the front entrance. She got out and walked up to the building, climbed the steps up to Kat's floor and walked down to number 203. She used the key that Kat had given to her to gain entrance to the apartment and carefully entered. She was fairly familiar with the layout of the place from being here twice already. The apartment had been ransacked. Whoever had been after Kat had obviously been really pissed to get here and find her gone. Everything had been pulled out of the cabinets in the kitchen, the kitchen table and chairs had all been upended or broken. She shook her head as she moved back into the living room where the state of things wasn't any better.

Kat didn't have a lot of "things", but what she did have had been thoroughly destroyed. Joss saw a picture that was lying on the floor, the glass was cracked and scattered across the carpet. She picked up the frame and studied the image within. It had been pretty scratched up but she could still see Kat and a tall, dark-haired, well-built man with his arms around her. The smile on both of their faces was infectious. They looked so...happy. She couldn't help but wonder who he was. Joss didn't think that Kat was the type to keep pictures of past boyfriends, and come to think of it, the two did resemble each other. A brother maybe? She set the picture back down and headed down the hallway to first the bathroom, which checked out. Then she headed across the hall to what she knew was Kat's room.

She opened the door and stepped just inside and saw that everything had been stripped off the bed, the mattress had been flipped off to the side, and the sheets ripped to shreds. The armoire had been turned over and all of the drawers along with their contents had been scattered across the room. It pissed Joss off to no end. Not only had someone come here with the intention of hurting Kat, but on top of that, they had to go and destroy every single thing that she had.

Joss noticed a wooden box lying on the floor with what looked like jewelry spilling out from the opening out onto the floor. She thought that she should probably gather it up and take it to Kat just so that if someone else decides to break in that it won't be stolen. As she started to walk across the bedroom towards the box she noticed movement out of the corner of her eye.

On pure instinct alone, she reached for her gun while simultaneously pivoting towards the direction where she'd seen the movement. She was only a split second too late to avoid the blow but quick enough to have it connect with her cheek instead of with her temple. The force knocked her against the armoire then she felt an arm slide around the front of her neck and another around her waist.

"You're gonna die bitch...just like that other bitch that lives here...I'll find her...take care of her too."

"Oh hell no, asshole!" She braced her hands against the tipped over piece of furniture and pushed back with as much force as she could muster while she rammed her head backwards towards her assailant's head. She felt the back of her head connect with the man's face and heard the muffled grunt of pain. It was enough to make the man loosen his hold on her giving her the advantage now. The arm around her waist dropped the she raised one of her legs and brought the heel of her shoe down directly down top of the man's instep. As soon as he jolted forward from the pain she used his lack of balance to her advantage. She grabbed onto his arm that was around her neck, bent at the waist, and pivoted her hip so that she could pull him over her shoulder. He was a large man and it had taken some umph to get him off of her but he'd underestimated her as so many before him. He landed with a thud just to the side of the armoire.

She exhaled and stepped back from the man lying on the floor. She grabbed her cell and started dialing Lionel's number. Before she pressed send she felt a tugging on her ankle and in the next second she was lying on the floor. She reached for the gun in her holster and pulled it out but it was knocked from her hand almost immediately when the man crawled up towards her and swept out his large meaty hand. It bounced a few feet away on the carpet, too far for her to reach as his heavy body landed on hers and those same hands started closing around her throat.

Joss started punching the man with everything that she had. At first it didn't seem like she was getting anywhere but then she got in a good punch right on the prick's nose that she was sure she'd broken earlier with the back of her head. She didn't take the time to smirk as he howled in pain and reared back away from her and both of his hands flew to his face. It gave her just enough room to be able to roll and pull herself out from under him and crawl over to her gun.

Her fingers had just reached the grip when she felt a sharp pain in her left side. She wrapped her hand around the gun, ignoring the searing pain. She twisted her wrist up, turned her head, dropped her shoulder, aimed, and pulled the trigger. The sound of the shot echoed through the small room, her ears rang a bit but she'd never complain. The force of the shot had also torqued her wrist back painfully but again, she wasn't going to complain, it did its job...quite well. The man had jerked and fallen backwards, as the bullet saved her from once again being entirely too close to being killed.

She sat up and drug herself further away from him. It looked like he was still breathing from where he lay twisted on the floor a few feet away. She grabbed her cell phone that had also dropped when he'd attacked her, and immediately dialed Fusco.

"Hey Carter, what's up?"

"Hey...you gotta...get over here." She took several deep breaths before continuing. "Kat's place. Call a bus."

"What? Carter, you ok? I'm on my way...hey! You ok?"

"Yeah... Oh shit."

"What the hell Carter? Oh shit what?"

She'd looked down at her side to find a large wet stain growing slowly larger on her left side. "I think the asshole stabbed me!"

"WHAT?! Wait...did you take care of him?"

"Yeah, I shot him...he's still breathin' though. Call the bus Lionel and get over here ok?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm on my way right now. You call the tall guy yet?"

"No!" She sounded a little more indignant than she'd meant to. "I hadn't planned on it. I'll call him later."

"Whatever... You do what ya want. I'll be there as quick as I can. And..."

"Yeah?"

"I'm glad you're alright Carter."

"Me too. Thanks...now get your ass over here." She heard the call disconnect. She looked around and found one of Kat's tee shirts a couple of feet away. She grabbed it and then slowly unbuttoned the bottom half of her shirt to take a look at where she was bleeding. It looked like maybe a one inch gash, didn't look like it had gone in too far, so no organs were hit, plus she wasn't bleeding _that_ much, she'd had worse. She pressed the tee shirt over the wound and held it firmly in place. She scooted back towards the door and propped herself up against the bedroom wall and trained her gun on the fucker bleeding all over the floor. She hoped he was in pain...a LOT of pain!

Fusco showed up about fifteen minutes later, taking much less time than it had taken her to get there. He walked down the hall, gun drawn and ready.

"In here!" She shouted out. "He's still passed out...or dead. Either way, it's clear."

"Got two busses on the way, one for him and one for you."

"Alright."

He knelt down beside her and tried to move her hand away from her side but she smacked his hand away.

"Hey! What the hell Carter...I'm tryin' to check you out."

"You don't need to see any more than you do every day to check me out Fusco."

Fusco chuckled and got back up.

"Yeah...you'll be just fine. But it looks like you'll have a pretty black eye to go with that smart ass mouth of yours."

"Ha Ha." She answered sarcastically. "Aren't you the comedian today."

"Hey, what can I say? You bring it outta me!"

She tried to laugh but it hurt her side and when she grimaced it hurt her face. "Damn it!" She resorted to cursing since she couldn't laugh or frown without it hurting something.

"What the matter?"

"Nothin'."

They heard the wail of the sirens, finally, coming down the street and the screech of the brakes as the came to a halt. Fusco got up and headed out so that he could direct the paramedics up to the apartment. A couple minutes later they were led in and immediately started working on her. About fifteen minutes later she was in the back of the ambulance and being taken to the hospital. She knew she had to call John and let him know what had gone down, but there was no way she'd be able to do that until after they'd had her stitched up and she could get out from in front of any prying eyes.

She decided to send him a text so that he would at least know that she'd cleared the place. As soon as they arrived at the hospital she grabbed the burner out of her pocket while the paramedics were occupied with wheeling her into the E.R. and texted John.

**K's place cleared. Can't talk now. Call u L8r.**

***********************************************

Kat and John headed out to the car. They stopped at the coffee shop where they'd stopped the last time they had gone out to the site. The barista recognized them both when they walked in. She smiled warmly at them and Kat noticed that her eyes lingered just a little longer on John as they walked up to the counter. Hell, she couldn't blame the girl. John was gorgeous and Kat knew it. Kat also knew that he was walking in with her; he'd chosen her, but that didn't stop the proprietary surge, making her reach out and take his hand in hers, entwining her fingers through his. She knew 'why' she'd done it, she just didn't know why she'd felt the overwhelming desire to stake her claim in front of the girl. John squeezed her hand and looked down at her with a twinkle in his bright blue eyes as his fingers threaded through hers. There was obviously no threat here because John had eyes for no one but her, so she explained her irrational behavior away by telling herself that it was just the need to be touching him.

The girl's smile didn't falter as they reached the counter and ordered their coffee. Kat relaxed almost immediately. John pulled his wallet from an inside pocket with the hand that wasn't currently occupied by hers. She watched as he pulled his card out with those long, insanely dexterous fingers of his. She knew all too well how very skilled they were and she immediately felt the telltale flush spread across her cheeks at the thought. She looked away towards the back of the shop then she felt his hand pull out of hers. In the next second it was sliding slowly across her lower back, down to her hip, and then she was being pulled tightly against his side.

He leaned down and brushed his lips across her ear as he whispered. "What are you thinking about?"

She shivered and felt goose bumps rise all along her skin. "Noth...nothing." 'Damn him...he never missed a thing.'

"Liar." He chuckled; his breath teasing the tiny hairs on her ear.

Kat looked up at him, a mock angry look crossing her face. "Ya know sometimes...I wish you were just a little less observant, Mr. Reese."

"Not going to happen... Besides, I couldn't take my eyes off of you... even if I tried."

"Ohh." She breathed; the only response she was capable of at the moment.

He chuckled lowly again. "So, are you ready to go?"

Kat had been so caught up in John and what he was doing to her senses, that she hadn't even realized that her drink was ready and was sitting on the counter waiting.

"Oh...oh yes, sorry." She picked up her coffee and felt the pressure from John's hand, still pressed against her hip, direct her back towards the door.

"Hey...no need to apologize sweetheart."

She grinned at the endearment. She'd been called that by a few people in her lifetime, and had promptly told them that she had a name, and to please use it...but she rather enjoyed hearing John call her that. When they got back in the car he asked her again what she'd been thinking about. She really didn't want to tell him about her thoughts about his...fingers...so she tried a diversion tactic.

"I was just thinking how much I liked having you call me sweetheart."

The left corner of his mouth pulled up into that sexy grin of his. "But that's not what you were thinking a few minutes ago when you started blushing, now was it...sweetheart?" He drew out that last word in a low drawl.

She felt herself blushing yet again as his face moved slowly towards hers.

"Tell me..." He said as he moved even closer; so close that she could feel his breath sweep across her mouth and down her throat. "...please..." He whispered.

'Oh shit, he's good'. She thought.

"I..." Was all she got out before his lips were pressed against hers and feasting on them voraciously. She gasped when he tilted his head to fit their mouths together and then his tongue was doing what it did best; turning her insides to a pool of molten lava. It burned..._she _burned...for him, and she loved every agonizing minute of it.

He pulled back suddenly, leaving her reeling. "Care to tell me now?"

"No...after..." She reached for him; intent on continuing their kiss but he pulled further back with a grin tugging at his lips again.

"Ah ah ah...tell me first."

"You...are wicked!"

"Oh, you have no idea." His eyes darkened and her breath caught in her throat. "But you will...as soon as you tell me what you were thinking."

She exhaled forcefully and dropped her head as John's phone beeped; interrupting them. He looked down at the text message and smiled.

"What is it?" She asked.

"Carter just got done at your apartment. We can stop by there this evening to pick up some clothes."

"Oh that's great! I mean...don't get me wrong, I love wearing your shirts but..."

"Not as much as I love seeing you in them."

She smiled and blushed; her eyes automatically closing. "...but I'd like to have some of my own clean clothes to wear also."

Kat felt his fingers under her chin, lifting it up. Her eyes opened to find him leaning so close to her that they were almost touching. "I know you do...but I prefer you without any clothes at all." He quickly kissed the tip of her nose and then in the next second he was shifted back around and starting up the car.

"Wicked...wicked man." She mumbled and grabbed for her seatbelt as they drove off towards the site, John chuckling merrily as he drove.

**********************************************************

As they pulled onto the site, Kat decided to mess with her 'wicked' man because if she was going to be frustrated all day, then she was going to make sure he was too. She could be just as wicked...she thought... She was going to try out the tactics he used on her when he'd made dinner for her, and dessert **of **her. She grinned to herself because...two could play at this game!

Throughout the day she would subtly brush up against him...'accidentally' of course, and then turn her eyes down so that he couldn't see the look in them. She had to make it seem as innocent as possible especially since they were constantly around members of the crew. At first, he seemed to be immune to her little game but she knew he had to be dying of frustration by the end of the day...if her state of mind was any indication at all. The touching...the whispered innuendos... it was driving her insane; in an utterly delicious way. She was really going to enjoy their time together when they got back to his place.

At the end of the day after she and John watched the last of her crew drive away from the site, she looked up at John with a smile. "Not too bad of a day today huh? No robberies OR attacks...I felt almost normal! Nothing to get excited or..._frustrated_ about! Let's head back to my office, I've got a couple of things to do before we leave. I _love_ these kinds of days!." She spun and walked off towards her office, her hair being whipped around by the breeze helping to hide her satisfied little smile as she walked with a bounce in her steps.

"So do I." He growled, as he quickly followed after her, but she didn't hear him.

Kat reached the office first with John right on her heels. She heard him close and lock the door behind her. She'd almost made it across the room to her desk before she felt a hand grab her arm. She was spun around and pulled into John's arms. Her surprised gasp was immediately swallowed up by his mouth. One of his arms wound tightly around her lower back while the other hand's fingers threaded through her hair and wrapped around to the back of her head, making the kiss even more intense. She grasped at the front of his shirt, realizing that there were no buttons to open so that she could have access to his skin. She dropped her hands to his waist and started pulling the bottom of his shirt out from his jeans. As soon as her fingers reached what she'd been searching for, he reached down and grabbed her wrists and pushed them away. He put them behind her back and held them there with one hand. His other hand moved back up to her face as he broke their kiss.

They were both panting and staring at each other. He smirked and then his eyes flickered somewhere down behind her. "What happened? Why did you stop?"

His smile grew as he backed her up slowly until the backs of her legs were pressed against something solid. She didn't want to look back because she would have to break eye contact with him and that was something that she didn't think that she could, or wanted, to do at the moment.

"I believe..." He leaned closer to her and kissed her nose. "...you had something..." Then he leaned down and grabbed her bottom lip with his teeth and slowly let it slide back out. "...to tell me about?"

She exhaled and let her head fall back just a bit and then answered innocently. "I did?"

"Mm hmm." He tilted his head and pressed his lips to her neck, just below her ear.

"I... I don't remember."

He switched to her other side and kissed her there as well before responding. "Well my dear, then I guess I have just forgotten what I was doing." He let go of her wrists and stepped back, dropping both of his hands to his sides.

"No!" She cried. "No, wait...please." She groaned. "You are SO mean, John Reese."

He smirked and stepped back towards her. "Not mean...just..._resourceful_ when I want something."

She shook her head at him and narrowed her eyes. "Why do you want to know so badly what I was thinking this morning?!"

"Because I want to know what caused you to look like that , so that I can do it again."

She tilted her head to the side. "Look...like what?"

He stepped closer and pressed his body against hers, bringing up his hands to cradle her face and ran his thumb along her bottom lip. "Blushing pink cheeks, that sweet mouth of yours opened just a bit, and your eyes turned down... just like every time I tell you how incredibly beautiful you are."

"Ohh."

"Just like you are, right now." He whispered.

She reached up and put her hands over his and pulled them down between them and sighed. "Your fingers..."

John looked down at her in confusion. "OK?"

"You were just... taking your credit card out of your wallet with one hand. I was... just thinking...how..." She swallowed hard and her cheeks reddened even more. "...what..." She turned her eyes down once again. She sighed heavily. "I was thinking about what you can do to me...with your fingers."

John was now the one to give the one word answer. "Ohh."

"God...I'm such a..."

His mouth crushing hers immediately stopped any further words from being spoken. Their tongues began swirling around each other's until he pulled back quickly. He reached down and pulled her shirt from her jeans and had it over her head and off before she could take another breath. He reached behind her and pushed something off of her desk and onto the floor. He made quick work of the button and zipper of her jeans and pushed them down off of her hips.

She stood there, almost completely bare before him as he grinned wickedly at her and cocked a brow. "Just my fingers huh?"

Kat nodded as a grin played at her own lips. His hands slid down her sides to her hips where he hooked his thumbs into the sides of her panties and pulled them over her hips. He slowly started pulling them down her long legs, lowering himself with each inch downward, while trailing his fingers over her skin. When he reached her feet he put one hand behind her left knee and bent it up so that he could slide her panties off of that leg, then he did the same with the right. As he stood back he allowed his fingers to trail back up her legs all the way up to the apex of her thighs. When he was standing up again, he wrapped his right arm around her back and left his left hand teasing her lightly just at the edge of her curls. She felt his arm slide up her back and he unclasped the last remaining piece of her clothing...one handed and then slid the straps down her arms.

She pushed her hips towards his hand resting between her legs. A deep growl sounded in his throat as he cupped her and let his middle finger slide between her folds. Her mouth dropped open and she moaned. "Please..."

He leaned his head closer to hers and whispered in her ear. "Wet already? For me?"

She let her head drop back. "Yes...always" She breathed. "...for you...Only for you."

He looked down at her full breasts, pressing against his chest with every ragged inhale of breath.

"Oh Kat." He said, as he suddenly plunged his finger into her.

She cried out to him and wrapped her arms around his neck. He lowered his mouth to hers and his tongue began mimicking the same motions his finger was making inside of her. He pumped in and out of her over and over and then he inserted two more fingers into her while his thumb began rubbing along the sides of her tight little bundle of nerves.

"Oh!" She cried and wrapped her arms tighter around his neck.

Her body was tensing, he knew she was so close. John thought about teasing her, making her wait but her soft whimpers of pleasure had him deciding against it...this time. He just wanted to hear her call out to him. He loved the sound of her calling out his name, and he vowed to do anything he could to hear it. She made it sound like a song, one she sang only to him. She dropped her head back, leaving her neck exposed. He bowed his head and began attacking her neck with his tongue and his teeth.

"Oh! Oh John...please...don't stop...please!" There was the beginning of her song for him and he wanted to hear more.

He curled his fingers forward so that he was rubbing against her front wall and increased the pressure of his thumb, allowing it to graze over her clit with every other thrust inside of her. His teeth nipped and his tongue soothed as she arched her back and thrust her hips towards him. She screamed out his name and he smiled in utter contentment. That was what he'd been waiting for. That beautiful raspy sound was a soothing balm for his soul.

Her body went limp in his arms and he gently pulled her up against him. Her eyes were closed, her lips parted but smiling, and her body still clenched around his fingers that were buried deep between her legs. He wanted so badly to stay like this forever but just as much, he wanted something else buried between her legs now.

"John." She sighed.

He slowly withdrew his fingers from her and she whimpered quietly at the loss. Then he gently lowered her back onto the desk and quickly removed his jeans and boxers. He watched her eyes slowly open and look up at him and then she cocked her brow. "Well...what are you waiting for?"

John reached down and looped his arms around her upper thighs and pulled her towards him. He teased at her entrance for a mere second before he pulled her to him and thrust towards her; impaling her to the hilt. She threw her arms over her head, grabbing the back edge of her desk, and moaned in ecstasy as he began pumping into her. He had thought he might be too rough on her but when she arched her back and called out to him he put that thought to rest quickly.

"John...Oh God...harder! Please!"

He held her legs up until she wrapped them around his back and then he leaned over her and wrapped his lips around one of her nipples.

"Oh yes! Fuck...please...don't stop!" She cried out.

"I won't Kat...not until you come for me." He let his teeth close around her nipple and then began rapidly flicking it with his tongue. She screamed out and almost bucked him off of her. He repositioned his feet and pulled her closer to him. He could feel her tightening around him as she kept calling his name over and over in time with his thrusts. He let go of one of her legs and reached down to stroke her clit and she completely lost it beneath him. After a few more thrusts into her tight, wet heat, he allowed himself to follow her over the edge, calling out her name as he fell.

He collapsed above her onto his forearms, letting his head hang down onto her chest. He kissed her between her breasts and then moved up to her lips which he nipped and sucked on as they both came down from the high they had just been on.

She finally spoke after several minutes. "John?"

"Hmm?"

"Let's go home."

He raised his head and smiled up at her and gave her the only answer he was capable of at the moment. "Gladly."

******************************

As they were exiting the trailer office, John grabbed Kat's hand and turned to kiss her. Just as he was turning around though, his eyes caught sight of a red dot on her forehead. He reacted on pure instinct, pushing her down and away and then swinging back around, gun already in his hand. Multiple shots rang out and he targeted the closest source, firing off three rounds in quick succession. A thud was his reward and he knew he'd taken out at least one of the assassins. Unfortunately, several more rounds thudded into the side of the trailer, narrowly missing him. He was pinned down against the side of the trailer. 'At least I can take out as many as possible before they get me so that Kat can get away.' He thought. 'I have to hang on as long as possible. Please, please...let her get away.' He continued to aim towards the flashes of the automatic rifles.

"John! John!" He thought he heard her voice calling him. "John, get down here!" For just a brief second, he glanced down to the base of the ramp that led up to the trailer. Kat was down below, frantically motioning him.

'Oh God! She was still here! Why hadn't she snuck away while he was covering her exit?' He rolled himself across the ramp and through the railings down to where she was.

"What are you still doing here? Get out of here before they hit what they've been aiming at! Now Kat!" He yelled at her.

"I'm not leaving you John, now shut up and get over here. I always leave a crawlway under the office trailers so that no cat or dog can get trapped, crawl in here after me!" She almost yelled back at him. 'Who did he think he was talking to? Did he really think that she'd leave him alone out there to face all those goons with guns?' She crawled forward on her stomach as quickly as she could, considering the pain she felt in her side. But she was trying not to think about that and even more important, she knew she needed to hide it from John, at least for the time being.

She heard him crawling behind her and also the shots as those men kept firing at her trailer. 'Damn it! Whoever was responsible for this was going to pay! First her equipment gets stolen, then her office gets shot up!' Inwardly, she tried to feed the anger, hoping it would keep everything else at bay. Up ahead of her, she saw the opening on the other side of the trailer, just a foot or two from the fence. As soon as she had reached the opening and pulled herself through, she crouched down behind the cinderblocks that made up the base upon which the trailer sat. Keeping one hand pressed to her side, she drew her gun from her waistband. John came through the opening next and she watched his eyes dart around, taking in the surroundings. The gunfire on the other side of the trailer was becoming more sporadic as there was no returning fire, but she also thought it sounded like it was getting closer.

"Kat." John spoke, getting her attention. "Can you climb up the fence and get out or do I need to boost you up?"

Kat looked up at the 10 foot fence around the site and shook her head. "I don't think so but I could try."

John pursed his lips and thought about their options; aware that they were quickly running out of time. "Ok, then I'm going to take those guys out. You stay here, or better yet, crawl back under and hide behind some of these cinderblocks." He waited to see that she was crouching back down before using the fence to climb. He pushed his back against the trailer wall and climbed to the top and disappeared. Several shots rang out and the gunfire once more resumed. Afraid that John would be exposed and alone up on the top of the trailer, especially if there were any gunmen up high in the building structure across the yard; Kat made a decision.

Tucking her gun back in her waistband, she grit her teeth and began climbing the fence as she had seen John do. Every time she had to rest her weight on her arms and torso as she climbed, she felt a new feeling of wetness spread out from her side. Finally, she reached the top and used her legs to push herself on top of the trailer on her back. She rolled over to her stomach as quickly as she could and tried to slither over near to John.

"Kat! What the hell are you doing? I told you to stay below!" He said angrily but never taking his eyes off the area in front of the trailer.

She didn't answer him because she felt it was rather obvious when she started shooting at a dark shape she saw creeping up to the far corner of the trailer. For the next five minutes, they both were engrossed in shooting at any movement or rifle flash they saw.

"I'm out." Kat eventually said. Her side felt like it was on fire and she rolled onto her back, hoping to ease the sharp pain.

John shot off three more rounds and then there was silence. Confident that he'd gotten the last of the shooters, he turned to Kat to give her a piece of his mind for not doing as he'd told her to. "Kat! So help me, if you ever disobey me like that..." He couldn't think of a threat dire enough to express the fear and anger he was feeling at the fact that she'd purposely put herself in danger. When he received no response from her, his blood suddenly ran cold. He scrambled over to where she was lying on her back. Even in the dark, he was able to see the dark stain on her light shirt. "Kat!" He yelled in anguish, ripping her shirt open, afraid of what he might find.

"John." She said weakly. "I'm ok, just hurts. A lot." And she pushed her hand against her side.

He sucked in great gulps of air, relieved that she was still able to talk to him. "Let me see, sweetheart. Come on baby, let me see how bad you're hurt." It was almost painful for him to speak calmly and quietly when all he wanted to do was shout out his rage that she'd been hurt…again...while he was trying to protect her. When she withdrew her hand, he felt gently along her side for a bullet hole. Realizing it was a graze and not a through and through, he said a silent prayer and tried to speak soothingly to Kat as she groaned when his fingers prodded her side. While it wasn't a bullet hole, judging by the amount of blood on her side, her shirt and his fingers, she'd lost quite a bit of blood. Quickly tearing her shirt into long, wide strips, he tightly bound her side until he could get a look at it in the light and begin to bandage it at home. Now would come the hard part.

"Kat, honey, you're going to need to help me get you down from here. I'm going to help you to the edge and once I'm down, you need to push yourself off the edge so I can catch you. Can you do that love?"

"Do I have a choice?" She responded in a quiet voice. "Ok, tell me when to jump."

"That's my brave girl. I'm going to carry you to the edge now, alright?"

Kat just nodded and bit back a moan when he picked her up. "Set me upright on the edge John or I might not be able to push off." He did as she asked, nervously removing his hands and hoping she wouldn't fall forward off the edge until he was ready for her. He swung his legs over the side and stepped on the railings of the ramp into the trailer. He was able to jump down from there and quickly ran to where Kat was sitting on the edge.

"Ok, I can catch you now honey, jump down." He said coaxingly. Kat pushed herself off the roof and landed in John's arms, letting out a small scream at the impact. "I know, I know, baby." He told her, holding her close to his body and trying to minimize the movement of hers. "I'm going to carry you to the car now and then we'll be home." He looked down at her and realized that mercifully, she had passed out. He quickly got her to the car and made a call to Carter as soon as he'd laid Kat down on the backseat. She didn't pick up so he decided to leave a message for her.

"Carter? Some hitmen were sent to Kat's work site tonight. She's been grazed and I'm taking her back to my place but I need you out here to figure out where these guys came from and who hired them. Right. Call me." John disconnected the call and pulled out into traffic, driving home as fast as he could.

***********************************


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

They were five minutes from his apartment when Kat woke and tried to sit up in the back seat. She grunted a little as she tried to move around with what felt like bandages tightly wrapped around her middle.

"Careful Kat!" John said from the front seat. "I just got the bleeding to stop and I don't want you to make it worse AGAIN."

Kat ignored the annoyed tone of voice from him and asked, "Where are we going?"

"Back to my apartment. I need to check out that wound in the light. I _think_ it's just a graze but I need to be sure. Kat what the hell were you thinking, putting yourself in danger like that?!" He asked angrily.

Kat cringed because she could see it coming. This was going to be their first fight, but this was too important an issue for her to back down. "Because John, I'm not about to let you get hurt, much less get hurt because of me."

"But that's my job, Kat! I put myself in danger to save people everyday!" He NEEDED to get her to understand that he would not allow her to put herself in danger each time someone was shooting at him!

"Well, not for this girl you won't! I'm not some shrinking violet, John. Up until two weeks ago, I'd been taking care of myself, BY myself, and I'll have to go back to doing that again, once this whole thing is over."

John was taken aback by her words. She was an independent woman and he loved that about her, but was she saying that once this was over, she'd be leaving? The thought of that happening was like a knife twisting in his gut. Had he read her so horribly wrong? He _thought _that they'd agreed that they were in a relationship, that they cared for each other, and that they were progressing to something more but...

When John didn't answer her, Kat felt that she needed to clarify things. She wanted no misunderstanding about her role in this relationship. "John, I appreciate your wanting to protect me and the things you've already done for me. But don't you see? I want to keep you safe just as much as you want to keep me safe. I CAN'T stand by and watch you get hurt if there's something I can do about it."

"Kat, I suppose I can appreciate that, but you need to understand, I will NOT let you get hurt on my account, while I'm doing my job. You can't and you won't protect me from that. I won't allow you to put yourself in danger like that again!

"So, you're asking me to respect your choice, but you aren't willing to respect mine!" She finally shouted, angry that he was trying to make her agree to something she didn't want to. They both sat there in silence for the rest of the trip and while he helped her get out of the car, she shrugged off his arm when he tried to help her walk up to his apartment.

Unfortunately, her pride was stronger than her body. She had to pause several times on the stairs when she became light-headed. "This is ridiculous Kat! Let me carry you up to the apartment." He said, reaching for her.

"Don't you dare John! I'm going to climb these stairs on my own because I choose to." She said through clenched teeth.

"Oh! You are the most infuriating woman I've ever met!" He shouted.

"I know." She smiled and began climbing again.

After several minutes, they finally reached the top and then she stood there swaying. "Alright John, I think I could use your help now." She said weakly.

"Finally!" He said, sweeping her up in his arms. He got them in the door and set her gently on the bed. "Ok, let me check out your side." He unwrapped the bandages from around her middle and prodded the edges of the wound. It was still bleeding a little but only sluggishly. "Yes, it's a graze, as I suspected, it would have been so much better IF ONLY YOU HAD DONE WHAT I TOLD YOU and not done all sorts of gymnastics to get up on the trailer." He spoke gruffly. "Let's get this cleaned up and get you to bed."

He scooped her up again and carried her to the bathroom. Kat thought it would be better not to argue with him about this and she wrapped her arms around him as he picked her up and walked with her down the hall. She rested her head on his shoulder and then spoke. "John, I don't want to fight. I just want you to know where I stand. You're so important to me and I don't know what I'd do if something happened to you..."

"Oh Kat, I know. I don't either. I...I lost someone I loved once and it almost destroyed me. I'm not sure what it would do to me if I lost you." He hugged her close and then set her down on the bench next to the shower in the bathroom.

She sighed and then said, "How about a compromise then. I'll bow down to your expertise on things relating to your job. If you tell me to do something, I'll do it, BUT I need to trust you to allow me to help you when I can, even if it puts me in danger. Neither of us is used to having someone protecting our backs but we're going to HAVE to get used to it if this is going to work between us."

John was silent for a long time as he cleaned her wound and used bandages to keep itclosed. When he was done, he looked up into her eyes. "I don't like the thought of you getting hurt Kat, but I do want this to work, I want US to work, so I'll 's the best I can promise right now."

"Then for now, it's enough. Now, take me to bed John."

"I am NOT going to make love to you tonight Kat. You need sleep so that your body can replenish some of the blood you lost." He picked her up and carried her out.

Kat pouted, but said, "Fine. Then at least hold me. I'll sleep better if you do."

He grinned at her and they snuggled together on the bed. "Try and keep me away!" They lay together, holding each other and drifted off to sleep.

*~*~*~*~*~*

John woke out of a sound sleep by his cell vibrating on the bedside table. He couldn't grab for it as quickly as he would normally have because one arm was trapped under a warm, pliant body and the other was wrapped over said body and encased in a death grip between her arms. He didn't want to move for fear of waking Kat, she obviously needed the sleep, but he needed to check his phone before the buzzing sound woke her. He carefully slid his left arm out from between hers and rolled onto his back so that he could grab the phone while his right arm stayed buried beneath her.

The display read '**Fusco'**. He seriously considered ignoring the call but then thought better of it. Fusco didn't normally just call him up to chat at just after eight, on a Saturday morning. And why the hell hadn't Carter called him last night to update him on anything she might have found out at the site after the shooting? He picked up the call and whispered his one word greeting. "Lionel."

"Nice." Came his quick retort. "No, good mornin'? No... thanks for doin' _your _job...nothin'?" He didn't give John a chance to answer before he continued. "Well, whatever...I just wanted to let you know I went out and took care of those shooters, well, what used to be the shooters, down at Kat's place."

Now the Detective had his attention and he wasn't worried about waking Kat anymore. "Wait a minute Lionel, why were _you_ there? I called Carter yesterday and left her a message after Kat got shot."

"Wait, what? Kat got shot?! Is she OK?"

"Yes Lionel, she's alright. Now what about Carter...where is she?"

John looked down at Kat as she shifted against him. She whimpered when she moved. He pulled her towards him with the arm that was still lying underneath her and she rolled onto her back. She sighed but didn't open her eyes yet.

"Well, she's home now. They released her late last night."

"Lionel..." He interrupted quickly. "...what do you mean, released?"

"From the hospital. She got attacked when she was at Kat's place yesterday."

"What?!"

Kat's eyes blinked open and she looked up at John. She frowned when she saw the look on his face, but she didn't speak.

"Yeah, some douche bag had been there waitin' for Kat to come back I guess. Carter took care of him but he got her with a knife, roughed her up a bit, before she got off a shot. He's in the hospital now in a shiny new pair of bracelets. He'll be there for a little while. She got him pretty good."

"Good girl." He whispered then closed his eyes. "So she's doing OK?" His voice was barely above a whisper.

"Yeah. She's real pissed though."

"She probably won't speak to me for a week...or two."

"No man, she's not pissed at you...well, no more than usual." Fusco chuckled. "She's pissed at the asshole who stabbed her. Anyway...Kat's place was pretty torn up from what I could tell and it wasn't from the fight Carter had with him either. Whoever's out to get Kat is pretty pissed that they keep missin' her. You gonna keep her under the radar for a while?"

"I am."

"Good. Well, like I was tryin' to tell ya earlier, I got the site cleared without too much of an issue. Called in a couple favors with some buddies of mine in ATF. They got the weapons and took credit for the 'bust' of what they're callin' an extremist group that's been targeting construction companies that support the 'green' initiative."

'Oh God', he thought. What if Kat had gone back to her apartment? It made him almost physically ill just thinking about it. He propped himself up on his elbow and switched the phone to the other hand so that he could reach out and run the back of his knuckles down the side of her face. Her eyes slid closed as his fingers reached her chin. He continued up the other side and then cradled the side of her face while his thumb made soft swipes across her lips.

"Hmm. That was clever, Lionel."

"Thanks, I can think on my feet every once in awhile, thanks to havin' to deal with your shit all the time." He chuckled again. "Well, just wanted to catch you up. You gonna need anything else today?"

"I don't think so. Thanks Lionel...for your help."

"Sure, no problem."

John disconnected the call.

"Hi." He swept a piece of hair off of her forehead and smiled down at her.

"Morning." Her smile was warm as she answered him.

"How are you feeling?"

Kat shrugged slightly. "Eh...maybe a _little_ sore but hey...what do you expect? Give a girl a break, I just got shot."

He didn't smile at her joke which worried her. "Hey...what's the matter?"

He leaned over to her and kissed her forehead because he couldn't answer the question she was really asking, so he deflected and told her about what Lionel had told him...about her apartment, and then about Joss.

"Oh no! Is she OK? We have to go see her!" Kat started to sit up, but cringed when a sharp pain tore through her side. "Ow! Damn it."

John reached out to her and pushed her gently back down. "No no no...you're not going anywhere."

"John..." She started but he quickly interrupted her.

"Nope." He leaned down and kissed her lips this time. He nibbled on her soft mouth and pushed against it with his tongue to gain entrance. At first, John thought she was going to give in, but then she put her hands against his chest and pushed up.

"Hey, Mr. Hypocrite..."

"Hypocrite?"

"Mm Hmm. Because if you think I can do _that _then I can get up and go see Joss at her apartment with you."

He sighed and then smirked at her. "Touche'."

"Ok good. Help me up then and I'll go get ready."

"Let me check the bandage first."

"OK." Kat lifted the bottom of her shirt up. John examined the gauze on top first to make sure that it hadn't soaked through in the night. It didn't look like it had bled any more than he'd expected it to.

He stared at her for a few more seconds before he reached beneath her and lifted her upper body into a sitting position. He saw that she still grimaced when she moved, but it wasn't a look that was laced with pain this time. He frowned at the fact that she was in any pain at all, but tried not to allow the anger to overtake him.

She swung her legs over the side of the bed, set her feet on the ground, and rose slowly onto her feet. John was already off the bed and standing next to her, ready to steady her if she needed it. She reached out as she wavered a little, but then she straightened, looked up at him, and smiled. "I'm good...I think." She took a few steps and then nodded. "Yep! I think I'm good."

He walked with her all the way to the bathroom. When she walked in, she turned around and started to close the door. "John, I'm OK, really. And...I really need to...ya know..."

"Right. I'll go start some coffee. Call me if you need me."

"I will." She smiled and closed the door.

It took Kat significantly longer than normal to get ready but finally she was done, had her coffee, and was headed out the door with John. It took them about a half hour to get over to Joss's apartment. John had called Joss to let her know that they were coming over. She'd told him that they didn't have to do that, but John said that Kat wasn't exactly going to take no for an answer. Joss chuckled at that and agreed not to shoot him when he got there, just for Kat's sake.

He looked over at Kat several times during the drive. He was trying to be coy about it because she'd already told him twice to stop treating her like she was going to break. He couldn't help himself though. She was tough, he knew that now, but she wasn't unbreakable and that scared him. Something else that scared him was the lengths that he was willing to go to, to keep her from being broken.

"What's wrong?"

Her voice snapped him out of his thoughts that had unwillingly turned to violence; led there by the possibility of having to avenge any acts against Kat.

"Nothing." He said as he glanced over at her with what he hoped was a convincing smile.

"Uh huh."

Her sarcastic reply told him that she didn't buy it.

"I was just thinking..."

"About...?"

"Nothing pleasant...I'd rather not talk about it."

"OK." She reached over and laid her hand on his thigh. "Is there something pleasant you'd _like _to talk about?

He reached down and put his hand on top of hers and rubbed his thumb lightly over the top of her hand. "I don't know about talking, but there's something pleasant I'd like to _do..._"

"Oh..." The familiar electric spark ignited in her lower belly as she thought about what that entailed. "Yes, me too."

"Ya know we _could _go back to my place and just wait until tomorrow to go to Joss's." He pulled her hand on top of the growing hardness between his legs.

"John." Her voice rose at the end of his name in a warning tone. "If you don't stop teasing me I'm gonna make you pull over someplace quiet and have my way with you, right here in the car...and I'm not sure how comfortable that'll be for me...and then we'd show up at Joss's with me feelin' sore and you'd be in a sour mood because you'd be blaming yourself, and I don't think that Joss needs to be dealing with that right now. I mean she _was_ just stabbed for goodness sakes." Her teasing tone turned serious. "Do you not want to go see her today? Is that what was botherin' you, a minute ago?"

John groaned. He hadn't really meant to make a pass at her because he knew she was still sore but, God help him, he couldn't seem to keep his hands off of her...and she was right, in all that she'd just said, except the part about going to see Joss.

"Kat, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make it seem like I don't want to go. I was thinking about you being hurt. It made me angry, but I shouldn't have let myself get worked up about it." He pulled her hand from his lap up to his lips and kissed it. "Forgive me?"

Her mouth dropped open as she looked at him in sheer amazement. "Sensitive and admits his faults? What's not to forgive?" She giggled as he shot her a mock annoyed look. Her laughter was cut off as she felt his tongue softly flicker across her skin as he kissed each knuckle. Her smile quickly turned to a look of need as her breath caught in her throat.

John heard the sharp intake of breath and knew that all was forgotten...but he didn't pull off the road like he desperately wanted to. He already had a plan in place as to how he was going to please her...later. He wasn't going to take the chance that he would further injure her by having his way with her in the car, no matter how much he was dying to pull her into the backseat and bury himself between her legs for hours. He squeezed her hand and brought it back down to rest on his leg again.

Kat closed her eyes and marveled at his self control. How did he _**do**_that; just turn it off at the drop of a hat? She promised herself to ask him about it. Maybe he could teach her too, so that she could function and think about other things when all she wanted was to tackle him to the floor and have her way with him. In the meantime, she took a deep breath through her nose and exhaled it through her mouth and looked anywhere but at John. She watched the concrete buildings pass slowly by as he made his way through the throng of taxis and other cars. They pulled up in front of a row of neat brownstones and John shifted the car into Park. He quickly got out and walked around to her door and opened it for her. She put both feet down and grabbed on to John's proffered hand. As soon as she was standing, he reached around and shut her door.

"Thanks." She said, and looked up at him with a grin. "I'm not totally helpless though."

"Never said you were." He stepped to her uninjured left side and took her hand in his. She squeezed his lightly as he led her up the steps to Joss's building. When they reached her door, John knocked softly. A minute later Joss opened the door cautiously.

"Hey." She smirked at John and then smiled warmly at Kat. "Come on in."

John let Kat preceed him in and then she looked up at him after Joss turned and started to gingerly make her way across her living room. John hurried over to her and offered his arm to her. He helped her ease slowly down onto her loveseat. Joss made a little sound as she sank down onto the plush leather.

"Is Taylor at your mother's?

She nodded her head. "Yeah, I called him yesterday from the hospital and had him go over to spend the week with her. I didn't want him seein' me like this. He worries enough about me because of my job. I didn't need his fears realized right in front of him."

Kat walked over and sat down gingerly next to her. Joss looked over at her with a confused look.

"Hey...you OK?... or has John been playin' a little too rough?"

Kat burst out laughing and immediately regretted it because her side lit up like it was on fire. She put her hand over her side to try and calm the searing pain so that John wouldn't worry and then overreact and have her leave before she'd had a chance to visit with Joss. She saw him shift out of the corner of her eye, but he didn't make any further moves.

"Are you alright?" He asked with a worried look o nm his face.

She nodded. "I'm OK." Then she looked at Joss when she addressed her question.

"I'm doin' better than yesterday, that's for sure." She said lightly.

"Why? What happened?"

"She got shot." John broke in. "On my watch."

Joss's head swung to look at John as he walked over and sat down in the recliner immediately to Kat's right. He didn't sit back and get comfortable like most people would. Instead, he sat forward in the chair, as close to Kat as he could get without sitting on the arm of the loveseat next to her. Joss thought he was acting even more protective than usual, and that just served to confirm her suspicions about John's feelings for Kat.

"Grazed...I got shot **at**,but it only grazed me."

"What? When?...where?"

"You forgot his brother 'who', his sister 'why', and his uncle 'how'." John broke in.

Joss glared at him and then tried to hide the smile with her hand while Kat giggled at them both.

John returned her glare with a one-sided grin before turning serious again. "Remember that message I sent you? Well, several gunmen took a shot at Kat yesterday evening as we were leaving her office down at the site. Pretty ballsy about it too. They had high powered assault rifles with laser pointers but thankfully their shots were still pretty bad, or Kat might have been..." He let his voice trail off.

"John pushed me out of the way. It could have been worse, but it wasn't. I'm a little worse for wear but, as you can see, I'm fine."

Joss's brows pulled together as she studied them both. John had a look of worry which bordered on the edge of anger while Kat's look was almost indignant. Although, underneath both of their very different expressions was something else. She thought she knew what it was, but she didn't quite know if her assessment was accurate. Maybe she would get the chance to talk to Kat alone and pry it out of her, because she sure as shit wasn't going to get anything of John.

Kat interrupted Joss's thoughts as she turned and looked at her. "So, enough about that...we came over to see how you're doin' Joss. I'm so sorry that you got hurt because of me."

"Oh come on, you don't really think that."

"Well...yeah, I do. If you hadn't gone over to my place, you wouldn't have been stabbed. If I hadn't had John occupied babysitting me..." She glanced at John. "Don't look at me like that John, it's true." Then she turned back to Joss and finished her statement. "...you wouldn't have been there by yourself..."

"OK, I'm gonna stop you right there. I've been through this same argument with John a few times... I'm a cop. I'm in danger of being shot, stabbed, run over, yelled at, and anything else you can think of, every damn day. I don't blame you. I understand why you might feel responsible, but I'm tellin' you right now, to stop. If I hadn't been at your place I could very well have been somewhere else, where I didn't know the layout of the place, and been even more caught off guard... It could have been worse...and has been before." Joss reached out and put her hand on top of Kat's and squeezed gently.

Kat inhaled and then sighed loudly. "Thanks...you're right, of course."

"Well of course I am..." She looked up and grinned at Kat then turned to John. "Just ask John."

Kat laughed softly, keeping herself from letting loose the belly-aching laugh that she knew would have hurt. John looked over at Joss and narrowed his eyes. Joss ignored him and laughed right along with Kat.

After Kat and Joss, none-too-easily, convinced John to go down to the Thai restaurant and pick up a late lunch, Joss decided to ask her about what was _really _going on between her and John.

"So, Kat...I guess you've been stayin' at John's since that night I dropped you off?"

"I have."

"And, is he at least being a gentleman and letting you have the bed, while you're staying there?"

Kat looked over at Joss, who wasn't quite meeting her eyes. Kat guessed that Joss could be a pretty tough investigator when she had her Detective cap on, but it seemed like she wasn't really interrogating too hard at the moment. It was more like a friend asking a friend about a night out with a guy. She looked...almost, embarrassed or even uncomfortable. Kat wondered if it was the fact that Joss hadn't known her for very long, or if it was the fact that her question involved John.

Kat giggled. Not seeing any reason why she should hide the fact that she and John were sleeping together, she answered Joss truthfully. "Oh I get the bed."

"OK good, I wasn't looking forward to giving him a lecture about it...not that he ever listens anyway..."

"Nope, no lectures needed. I get the bed...as long as he's there with me."

Joss's head snapped up along with one of her perfectly shaped brows and fixed Kat with a narrow eyed stare.

'Ah', Kat thought. 'There's Joss, the interrogator'.

"What?" Kat asked simply. "Don't tell me you didn't at least have a tiny inkling about us."

Joss's eyes softened and she grinned at Kat. "Yeah...I did. It just...I've been working with John for a little while and I've never seen John so...happy, or protective of anyone else...and that's sayin' a lot."

Kat couldn't help the smile that crept upwards as she caught Joss's meaning of her 'anyone else' comment. "You knew... that first day, didn't you?"

Joss shrugged. "I suppose...I had my suspicions, but I didn't know for sure.

Now it was Kat's turn to narrow her eyes. "Uh huh."

"What?" Joss's voice rose, cracking just a little.

"You may be a great detective, but you're a shitty liar."

"You know I got a gun, right?"

Kat laughed again and quickly grabbed her side. "Damn it, stop makin' me laugh."

Joss chuckled. "You and me both honey. Hey, you want some coffee?"

"Oh yeah."

Both women struggled in their own way in getting up off the loveseat. Joss seemed to be having a little more of an issue moving so Kat attempted to help her up.

"Hey, why don't you sit at the table and just tell me where everything is, I'll make the coffee."

"You got it." Joss sat and directed Kat to where everything was. When the coffee was done, Kat poured two cups, added the creamer and sugar, and went to sit down next to Joss.

"Soo, you and John..." Joss said.

Kat took a sip of her coffee. "Yeah..." She whispered, running her fingers over the rim of her cup.

"You like him a lot, dontcha?"

"Not really any beating around the bush with you, is there Joss?"

"Not when it comes to John." She took a sip of her coffee and rested her chin on her hand. "Kinda comes from months of chasin' the man...he holds a special place in my heart."

Kat's head tilted to the side. "Why did you do it?"

"What?"

"Chase him...when he was saving people."

"Well, did the cops stop chasing Batman, just because he was saving people?"

"Commissioner Gordon did." Kat answered her question quickly.

Joss's eyes met hers with a seriousness that matched the tone of her voice. "I was naive Kat. I thought it was all black and white, good or bad, right or wrong... _**I**_ was wrong...and thankfully I found that out before one of us was killed."

Kat saw the fierce look in her eyes, but she also saw sorrow there. "He really likes you Joss, and he doesn't hold anything that you're blaming yourself for, against you."

"I do...sometimes."

"I can understand why."

Joss studied her for a moment before responding. "Yeah, I suppose you can."

"Ya know Joss, you remind me a little of my brother." Kat smiled.

"Oh yeah? How so?" Joss's mind flashed back to the picture of the nice looking man in the picture with Kat that she had seen laying broken on the floor of Kat's apartment yesterday.

"You're both tough, no-nonsense, family oriented, and..."

"And what?"

"Well, I was gonna say hot, but I thought that might sound weird, saying that about my brother."

Joss giggled. "Girl!...You think I'm hot? I KNEW it!"

Kat couldn't stop the laugh that bubbled out of her but immediately regretted it. "Ow! Damn it, don't make me laugh!"

That got Joss giggling even harder at which point John walked in on the two women laughing with odd looks of pain mixed with glee, on their faces. When they looked up at him and saw the look on his face, their laughter increased and that had them both clutching at their sides and breathing hard.

"You ladies alright?"

Joss was able to speak first. "Oh yeah, I just found out your girlfriend has a little crush on me."

"What? Joss!" Kat shrieked.

Joss was nearly doubled over in her fits of laughter.

"I guess I can't leave you too alone again."

"Nope. Kat might come on to me."

"Joss, damn it, if you weren't injured, I'd kick your ass!"

"Uh huh...if I wasn't shot, you'd never even get close."

"Oooh, so is that a challenge?"

"You better believe it honey!" Joss answered, still giggling.

"Oh boy." John mumbled. "Neither one of you know what you're getting into."

Both heads swung to look up at him incredulously, then they were both laughing again. John just shook his head as he walked into the kitchen and set the takeout bags on the counter. He dished both Joss and Kat a plate and then sat down at the table across from them. They ate in a companionable silence. When they were finished they sat and talked for a couple of hours until both Joss and Kat stopped talking as much. Joss had taken a pain pill and had shared one with Kat too. They both looked like they could fall asleep where they sat. John took that as his cue to take Kat home.

When he suggested it, Joss almost looked disappointed, but she also looked like she didn't have the strength to try to convince them to stay. John helped Kat up off of the couch. He asked Joss if she would like some help getting to her bed. She looked like she was going to refuse, but she gave in to his offer, only because she didn't think she'd be able to make it by herself at this point. He helped her up and put his arm around her.

"Well John, first your girlfriend calls me hot, now you're taking me to bed...what's next?"

John chuckled, a deep, hearty sound. "Well Joss...you _are_ hot, but like ya said, I've got a girlfriend. And I'm pretty sure she's the jealous type."

When they reached her bed, John pulled down the coverlet and sheets, and gently lowered her onto the bed. He reached down and lifted her legs up so she didn't have to strain to lift them. As she settled down into her pillows, he pulled the covers over her.

"Hey, do you need us to stay? Kat could come lay down in here with you. We don't _have_ to leave."

"Naw..I'm not really up to having a threesome right now."

John shook his head and chuckled. "Call me if you need anything at all."

"Thanks." Her voice was soft and slightly slurred.

"You're welcome." He placed his hand on her shoulder. Her eyes drifted slowly closed. He turned and walked across her room. Her voice stopped him when he reached the doorway.

"John."

"Yeah Joss?"

"You're a good man...You take care of her..."

He smiled, even though she couldn't see it behind her closed lids. "I will, I promise."

He walked back out into the living room where Kat was leaning up against the door. "Oh sweetheart...I'm so sorry. I should've taken you home sooner."

"Mmm...Is OK." She mumbled.

"No, it's not." He opened the door and ushered her out, then he turned the lock and pulled the door shut. He turned to Kat, gave her a gentle kiss on the cheek, and then swung her up into his arms. Her soft gasp was the only sound she made as he carried her down the steps, and out to his car.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13******

**When they arrived back at John's apartment, Kat was exhausted both mentally and physically. After the grilling from Joss about her feelings for John, and then the fits of laughter they'd had, she was beat. She glanced at the clock. It was only four thirty, but she felt like she could lay down and sleep for hours. The only problem she had with doing that was the fact that John had said that he had plans for her when they got back. While she didn't know exactly what those plans were, she at least knew they involved John and that was all she needed to keep herself awake. Her thoughts were interrupted by a pair of long arms wrapping around her from behind.******

**"How are you feeling, Sweetheart?" ******

**She sighed and wrapped her arms over his. She hissed softly when the skin pulled on her side. He'd heard her, of course, even though she'd tried to be quiet. "I'm fine...just a little tired is all."******

**Yes, he knew she had to be tired. "Well, you did lose a fair bit of blood yesterday and those pills have to be taking effect by now . Why don't you go lay down for a little while?" He leaned down and kissed the side of her neck lightly. "It might be a little bit before the... things arrive for my little surprise for you." ******

**She groaned. Laying down sounded SO good, but she was also really intrigued as to what he had in store for her. "OK." She said. Her fatigue won out over her libido...this time. "But you have to promise not to let me sleep all night. You have to wake me up." She turned in his arms and looked up at him with as serious of a look as she could muster at the moment. "I do NOT want to miss out on whatever you've got planned. Got it?"******

**He smiled that one sided grin that made her insides feel like she was on the downhill slide of a rollercoaster.******

**"Oh, I'll get you up alright." He whispered. "I promise." He dipped his head to take her lower lip gently between his teeth. His tongue flicked against it lightly and then he was devouring her mouth greedily just like he'd done when they'd got back in the car at Joss's. She sighed softly when he finally pulled away from her. He kissed the tip of her nose and her forehead and then walked her over to his bed. He slowly undid her jeans and slid them down her long legs. He stood back up as she stepped out of them and then looked up at him expectantly. He closed his eyes tightly and exhaled before opening them back up. He reached out and ran his fingers down the side of her cheek. "Not yet...Kat..." He whispered. He leaned his forehead against hers and cradled her face in his hands. His resolve was being severely tested. Her bare legs were tempting him mercilessly and her full breasts were pressed against his chest teasingly. He knew his limits, and he had exceeded them for the day. He stepped back from her. "Please, lay down. I want to check your bandage."******

**She looked up at him and smiled warmly. "OK." He had a feeling she had no idea what she was doing to him just by standing there in his tee shirt. He waited until she'd laid down on the bed before he pulled the shirt up to just below her breasts. It took every bit of his willpower to stop there. The gauze bandage had no blood on the outside which was definitely a good sign. It also helped him feel more comfortable about what he had planned for her later. ******

**He lifted one side of the bandage to check the wound underneath. Her stomach contracted, but when he looked up at her face, she gave him a reassuring nod. He returned the bandage to its place, leaned down to place a kiss right next to it. She made a tiny noise and he felt her hands start to run through his hair. He kissed her once more before he reached up and took her hands in his. "You're killin' me Kat."******

**"Me? ****_I'm_****not the one who keeps kissing ****_you_****in places and making you feel like you're on fire!"******

**He chuckled. "I'm sorry. You're right. I'll leave you alone now so you can take a nap. You, need to keep your strength up."******

**"Ohh.." She answered quietly with a smile.******

**He watched as her eyelids sank lower and lower. He pulled the shirt back down and pulled the bedspread up over her temptingly bare legs. Then he swept a lock of hair away from her face watching as her eyes closed. They were very slow to open back up which meant that he had been correct in his assumption that she was very tired. He ran his hand lightly over her face and her eyes slid closed again. This time they didn't re-open and he knew that she was finally asleep.******

**He hadn't even been away from her much at all during the entire day, but he still couldn't get enough of her. He wanted so badly to crawl into his bed next to her and watch her while she slept until she woke. Then he would take her slowly, over and over until she was exhausted once again. They would then fall asleep with legs, arms and fingers entwined. He felt himself hardening just thinking about it. He closed his eyes and turned away from the bed before he lost all of his self-control. The items he'd ordered would be delivered within the hour and he wanted to get things ready for when she woke up...******

**~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*******

**Kat stretched languidly, and took a deep breath. Her eyes opened slowly to find the room bathed in a soft orangish-red glow. She guessed it had to be around seven o'clock, based on the sunset she could just barely see through the window farthest to the left. She also noticed that the other side of the bed was empty. She had fully expected to wake up to John laying next to her, but he wasn't there, or anywhere else within eyesight at the moment. She didn't think he would have left the apartment without her. She sat up slowly, swung her legs over the side of the bed, and stood slowly.******

**"****John?" She called out. When she didn't get an answer right away she called out again, a bit louder. "John!" ******

**She was walking towards the kitchen area when he came running into the room. "Are you OK?" His eyes quickly searched her from head to toe..******

**"****Yes...yes I'm fine. I just didn't know where you were, and you didn't answer me the first time I called."******

**He exhaled quickly and then smiled as he slowly reached out and wrapped her in his arms. "Good. Did you have a nice nap?" He asked and dipped his head down to capture her lips with his.******

**"****Mmm, yes. I sure did, thank you." She answered when he'd released her mouth. "Did your 'delivery' come?******

**"****Yes it did. I guess you're ready to enjoy yourself then, my dear?" He drawled.******

**"****Ohh yes." She ran her hands up his chest. He wore a white tee shirt and a pair of grey jogging pants, and he simply looked good enough to eat.******

**"****Good..."******

**She felt his hands around her waist as they slid her shirt slowly up. She raised her arms for him and when her shirt was off he reached around her and unhooked her bra. He slipped it down her arms and let it fall to the floor alongside the tee shirt. She heard his breath hitch in his throat. The sound brought a smile to her face. His eyes were hidden by lids lined with those heavenly black lashes as he took in the sight of her bare breasts. His mouth fell open and he sighed softly.******

**"****Sooo. Is ****_this _****my surprise?"******

**His eyes snapped up to meet hers, sparkling in amusement, but he didn't answer her. Instead, he quickly pulled his shirt over his head and let it fall to the ground. Next, he slid his fingers into the waistband of her panties and slowly pulled them over her hips. He knelt in front of her as he lowered them down her legs. When he stood back up, he ran his hands over her cheeks, down her neck, to her chest, and finally lightly over her breasts. Her eyes sank closed as his fingers reached her nipples. A moan escaped her lips and her head fell back. The next thing she felt was one arm slipping behind her shoulders and the other behind her knees as he swept her up into his arms. She wrapped her arms around him and buried her face in his neck. He smelled...like the ocean, and something else, uniquely John.******

**He carried her quickly to his bathroom and set her down gently next to the tub. She opened her eyes and looked around the room as another lovely smell reached her. A quiet 'Oh' escaped as she took in the lighting created by the candles lining the built in shelf a couple of feet above the top of the sunk in jacuzzi tub. There were rose petals floating on the surface and little purple buds that looked very much like Lavender.******

**"****Oh John, it's beautiful." ******

**His eyes crinkled as he smiled. "I'm glad you like it." He leaned down and nuzzled her neck. Her shoulder pulled up and she giggled. His day old scruff tickled her skin and it had goosebumps rising all over her body. "Aren't you going to get in?" He asked quietly******

**She turned her head and looked up at him. "Thought you'd never ask." He took hold of her hand as she stepped over the lip of the tub. She walked slowly down the two steps and sank down into the hot, fragrant water. "Ohh, this is sooo..." Her words were cut off when John's arms wrapped around her, pulling her against his chest, and crushing his lips to hers. She hadn't even realized that he'd removed the rest of his clothes and followed her in so quickly. Then his hands were grabbing her hips and pulling her to him. He slid his hands down behind her legs and lifted her so that they wrapped around his waist. Before she knew what was happening, he pulled her firmly down and impaled her with his hard cock. She cried out in sheer joy as he filled her completely. Her arms immediately wrapped around his neck holding onto him tightly and then she returned her lips to his as he started moving inside her. She soon found that this was not going to be slow and sensual lovemaking. His thrusts were hard, frantic, and exciting, and she thoroughly loved had been slightly nervous about her side hurting, not that she would have turned this down, but she was elated that she wasn't actually feeling much pain at all at the moment. ******

**"****Oh John..." She pressed her mouth up against the side of his ear. Her voice was quiet, just barely a whisper, almost as if she were embarrassed by what she was saying. "...harder, please. I love it when you do it hard..." He rolled his hips eliciting a loud cry from her. ******

**"****Please... please, don't stop."******

**"****I won't ...I can't...You...make me so..." He couldn't even finish what he was going to say. He bent his head and nipped the skin of her neck as he continued thrusting up into her wildly.******

**"****Oh! Ohhh good... because... I'm going to...Oh God!" ******

**He wrapped his arms tighter around her, crushing her breasts against his chest, and thrust his hips even harder against her. He felt her body tense. Her arms tightened around his neck, then her inner walls were pulsing around him. He didn't stop moving inside of her until he felt her head drop heavily onto his shoulder, then he heard a small sound escape from her.******

**"****I'm sorry." He whispered next to her ear. "I hadn't meant for it to happen quite that way."******

**His arms slid slowly down her back until they reached her hips. She obviously thought he was going to withdraw from her because her arms tightened around his neck and her legs tightened around his waist. "Please don't." She whimpered.******

**"Don't what? Did I hurt you?" His eyes widened as he tried to pull back from her again.******

**"No!" She cried, but then quickly lowered her voice and leaned forward to kiss him. When she pulled away, she squeezed her legs around him again and smiled. "No...I just didn't want you to...ya know..." She lowered her eyes to look down where their bodies were joined below the water. He watched her face blush beautifully.******

**His voice was a low growl. "Ahh. I think I understand..." He slid his hands back down her hips again, pushed her back just a bit, then quickly pulled her to him again, burying himself to the hilt.******

**"****Oh!" Her eyes snapped back up to his. "Yes..." She breathed. "Yes, you definitely understand."******

**He repeated the movement several times and then stopped. His arms slid up around her neck and his hands cupped the back of her head. He pulled her mouth to his and feasted on her plump pink lips. They kissed for several minutes, both of them enjoying being held and connected in as many places as possible. Finally, John moved backwards on his knees until he reached the seat of the tub. He rose up enough to slide back onto the seat. He pulled her legs from his waist and set them gently on the seat so that she was resting on her knees while straddling his hips. The water came up to his upper chest while it only came up to just below her breasts. His eyes flickered down to take in her hardened peaks as they bobbed enticingly in the water and brushed against his chest. They were a beautiful dark rosy color and contrasted so nicely with her slightly tanned skin. She was utterly enticing and driving him insane. He growled and bent to wrap his mouth around one of her soft peaks. Her raspy moan was music to his ears. He had to hear it again. He gently sucked her nipple into his mouth and pulled it between his teeth. He held it securely and then his tongue began to flicker quickly over and around it.******

**"****Oh God! Oh... Oh please..."******

**His lips pulled up in a smile around her breast. It wasn't the sound he'd been trying for, but it was just as sweet and had him hardening even further inside her. He slid his hands around to cup the backside of her hips and began thrusting into her again. This time was much different though. His movements were slow and deliberate. He slid her back so that he was almost out of her, before leisurely pulling her back and sheathing himself inside her again.******

**His tongue stopped and he switched to her other breast. He sucked her nipple into his mouth once again and held it in his teeth. This time, he moved his tongue ****langorously over the tight bud. She arched her back and her head tilted back towards the water, pushing her chest more firmly against his mouth. The sound he'd been waiting to hear rose out of her and echoed off of the tiled walls. He tore himself away from her breast reluctantly, but was rewarded when her mouth eagerly found his. Her tongue brazenly demanded entrance by pushing against his lips. He willingly complied, meeting hers with his own, beginning a dance that swept from his mouth to hers and back again.******

**His hands slid up and cupped her breasts gently, his thumbs sweeping across her nipples. She thrust her chest forward again. He chuckled wickedly and couldn't help but think that she was getting greedy...and he loved it... He pulled her nipples between his thumb and fingers and teased them relentlessly until she threw her head back and cried out his name.******

**She had started moving her hips on her own since his hands had left them to attend to her breasts. Her knees were sliding into the back of the seat with her thrusts, but there was no way she was going to stop. She wanted him so badly that she could barely breathe. One of his hands left her breast and she whimpered into his mouth as their tongues continued their dance. She didn't miss it for long though. She felt it slide down her stomach to find her tight little bundle of nerves and she nearly came undone. Her body spasmed uncontrollably but she fought to keep her hips moving. She slid her hands from his shoulders, up to his face, and tried to push him back from her. When he allowed her to break the kiss, he looked up at her.******

**His eyes were a dark, greyish blue, much darker than she had ever seen them before. His pupils were dilated and his skin was flushed. She continued moving her hips, pushing towards him, forcing herself onto him as hard as she could. His fingers continued their movements against her clit and she almost came right then, but she stopped herself again. She wanted to come with him...she would wait...Well, she would try, but with one of his hands on her breast, another between her legs and his body pumping into hers...she wasn't sure how much longer she could control her body's reaction to him. Hell, she was proud of herself for lasting this long!******

**"****John..." She leaned her forehead against his and closed her eyes. "...please. I can't..."******

**"****What?" His breathing was just as heavy and uneven as her own now. "What can't you do?"******

**She couldn't believe she was going to say it. How embarrassing! Not even being able to control her own body. "Please John... Can you please just..."******

**His fingers stopped moving for just a moment, giving her a temporary reprieve. She might be able to hold out now...just a little bit longer. ******

**"****What do you need?...I'll do anything, Kat...Tell me."******

**She opened her eyes and stared into his, then she leaned her head next to his, putting her mouth right next to his ear and whispered. "I want you to come...inside me...now...please."******

**She clenched her inner walls around him and increased her pace. Only seconds later, his arms wrapped around her back, pulling her tightly to his chest as he roared out her name. She closed her eyes and finallyallowed her body's release.******

**She came in silence as his calls rang in her ears. When she finally collapsed against his chest with her arms lying over his shoulders and her face buried in his neck; he breathed out a whisper.******

**She hadn't heard what he'd said. "Hmm?" Was the only response she was capable of at the moment. He ran his hands down over the back of her wet hair and then began running them up and down her back.******

**"****It's...it's nothing..." He turned his head and kissed her cheek. "I'm sorry, for snapping at you earlier, in the car."******

**"Oh John, I understand..." ******

**"No..." He interrupted. "There's no excuse, only my own reason. I was angry that I hadn't been able to keep you from being shot and I was so scared that you were hurt badly, but that's no excuse, and I'm so sorry.******

**She smiled down at him. "Well then..." She kissed his left cheek. "...I guess..." Then she kissed his right. "...I'm gonna..." She leaned and took one of his earlobes with her lips and flicked her tongue over it before drawing slowly back. "...have to..." Then she repeated the action with his other ear. "...forgive you..." She grabbed his lower lip in her teeth and sucked it into her mouth before pulling back to finish speaking. "...won't I?"******

**"Mmm I wouldn't say that you ****_have_****to...but it would be...nice." He cocked a beautifully arched brow as he said the last word.******

**"Nice, huh?" She dragged her hands back over his shoulder and down his chest, letting her nails scrape firmly across his skin. She didn't stop at his chest, her fingers continued down to where their bodies were still joined. She ran her fingers through the coarse hair there and gave him a grin that rivaled his sexiest smile. He chuckled low, grinning up at her through dark hooded lashes.******

**"Really?" His voice had a particularly odd lilt to it and his eyes took on a wicked gleam.******

**Her eyes widened but not in fear. Her mouth fell open and her tongue snuck out to wet her lips. He could hear her breathing as she went completely still other than the movement of her chest. Her fingers had stilled momentarily as well. He slid his hands down her sides to her hips. He gripped them firmly and slid her back off of him. She whimpered at the loss, feeling empty now. She bit at her bottom lip, wondering why he'd pushed her away. She didn't have to wonder long though.******

**"How's your side?" He asked, his voice quiet but barely contained, it seemed.******

**"I...um... It's fine, John." She stammered.******

**"It isn't bothering you at all?"******

**"No..." She lied.******

**His eyes darkened. "Good. I need you to get out."******

**Her head jerked back like he'd slapped her. She pushed away from him back to the middle of the jacuzzi. "But... why? Why do you want me to leave? What did I do?"******

**He moved towards her and she scooted further back until her back was pressed against the back edge. "No, Kat...Honey, I didn't mean leave. I just meant for you to get out of the water. He advanced on her before she had a second to react. His hands cradled her face and his mouth descended on hers.******

**The kiss lasted several minutes as he tasted her fully and she tentatively began to respond. She'd been horrified when she'd thought he wanted her to leave. The thought that it could actually happen, that he would ever ****_not want her_****anymore, made her sick to her stomach. She never wanted to leave this man. It would kill her, she knew that unequivocally. When he'd corrected her, the elation that she'd felt was almost euphoric to the point that she thought she was going to pass out. Then he was touching her, kissing her, and she was once again able to breathe. She wrapped her arms around his neck, subconsciously taking her insecurities out on him as she pulled him tightly to her. She felt one of his arms slide down and slip behind her knees. He lifted her up, cradling her in his arms. She tilted her head and nuzzled her face in the crook of his neck. He moved to the side of the tub and easily lifted her legs over the side so that she was sitting on the edge.******

**She looked down at him but didn't relinquish the hold on his neck completely. "****_We're_****getting out now?"******

**She had just barely emphasized the 'we're' in her question, but he'd caught it.******

**"****Yes..." He stroked his thumb across her cheek. "****_We've_****been in here long enough." He stood up from where he'd been kneeling directly in front of her. She watched as the water ran in rivulets down his beautifully toned body. She let her hands slide from around his neck, down his chest, following the path of the water until she reached his waist where his beautiful cock rested against his thigh in front of her. Before she was able to brush her fingers over him, his hands were wrapped around hers. He climbed up the steps out of the jacuzzi and stood in front of her. He pulled her to her feet and slid his hands around her, his hands coming to rest on her lower back. She pushed against him, feeling his rapidly grown erection pressing firmly against her belly. She grinned and wrapped her arms around him, pulling him even tighter against her.******

**A low, smooth growl rumbled in his chest when he spun her around and pressed her against the wall. He lowered his lips to her ear and whispered breathily. "You're sure, there's no pain?"******

**She nodded, hoping like hell that he wouldn't be able to see right through her. He was so good at reading her, but she was pretty good at hiding things too. She would have to be hurting a hell of a lot worse than she was right now to jeopardize more time doing what they'd been doing tonight. His eyes narrowed for a split second and she thought she'd been found out, but then his actions proved otherwise. He quickly lifted her up and crushed her against the wall. She grunted quietly as the air was momentarily forced out of her lungs with the pressure of his body. She wrapped her arms over his shoulders to help him hold her up but it was unnecessary. Her legs wrapped around his waist and in the next second she cried out as he pushed roughly into her.******

**Her eyes shut and her head fell to his shoulder as he began thrusting rapidly. She moaned his name, her lips moving against his skin and then her tongue darted out to taste the light sheen of sweat on his neck. When she did that, he groaned and increased the pace of his thrusts. She felt the sting of his teeth and made the barely conscious decision that she would return the gesture. He was now bucking into her so hard that she was barely able to hold on. She was aware of the sharp pain in her side and tried desperately to ignore it but when one of his hands slid roughly down her side and brushed past it she gasped in pain. Immediately she knew she had to do something to hide it or he would stop, and she didn't want that at all. She opened her mouth and bit down hard on his shoulder. If anything, she was hoping it would distract him from her reaction to her pain. She closed her eyes, tasting the sharp tang of his sweat as he slammed his body against her. The way he growled her name had her coming around him and screaming out his name in seconds.******

**He wrapped his arms more tightly around her making sure that he had a good grip on her and then backed away from the wall. He hadn't come, that much she knew. He was still rock hard inside of her as he carried her out of the bathroom and over to the bed. He lifted her off of him letting her fall to the bed, then he crawled next to her and flipped her over. The room was fairly dark except for the moonlight streaming in through the large windows lining the room. She felt his hands run up and down her back and then they came to rest on her hips. He lifted them up and pulled her back towards him. The position had her hips lifted off of the bed with just enough room for him. Then he pulled them down as he entered her swiftly from behind.. She hadn't expected it and the sheer size of him had her gasping aloud.******

**With her forearms pressing down on the bed and her hips tilted back, the position he had her in made her feel even more full than she normally did. He started thrusting so hard that she had to grab onto the bedspread to keep him from pushing her across the bed. He'd never been this rough with her before but...she really liked it. The position was also less painful for her side than when he'd had her upright against the wall, but it also let him slide more easily into that most coveted spot. She wasn't there long though as his movements became less rhythmic and more frenzied. When he rolled his hips up into her, she bowed her back as a flood of heat roiled through her. She came so hard that she saw flashes of light bursting behind her closed eyes.******

**Kat was barely aware of his release as she called out his name over and over. She felt him shift behind her and then he was pulling slowly out. A small whimper was all she was capable of at the moment until his hands started rolling her onto her back. She hissed when a pain in her side took her by surprise.******

**"****Shit." He mumbled.******

**He slid one arm under her back and one under her knees and moved her up towards the head of the bed. Her eyes were still closed but she felt him shift again, and then his fingers were near the site where she'd been shot. She'd tried valiantly to keep the fact that it still hurt from him. Obviously, when she'd been out of it, her defenses were down and she'd forgotten to hide the signs.******

**"****Damn it, Kat..." His voice was quiet. "..Why didn't you say something?"******

**Her eyes flickered open slowly. When her eyes met his, she saw worry, but not anger. She was thankful for that at least. "Because...I didn't want you to stop." She smiled lazily.******

**His cheek pulled up in a quick half smile, but it fell almost immediately. "My beautiful Kat..." He leaned down and pressed his lips softly to her skin just above the bandage on her side. "I'm not going anywhere. You don't have to hurt yourself. We can wait until you're better."******

**"****No!" She tried to sit up but he pushed her back down gently.******

**"****Calm down sweetheart." He chuckled, leaning over to kiss her again. "Let me get this changed to a dry bandage."******

**"****Oh! God what happened?" She reached out, her fingers lightly brushing his shoulder.******

**He flinched and looked down to where she'd touched him. There was a light smear of blood and an angry, red, slightly oval shaped mark. He grinned down at her. "You've got quite a set of chops." He watched her facial expressions change from confusion to surprise, and finally to sheer horror.******

**"****Oh my God." She whispered, turning her head away from him. "I'm so sorry."******

**"****Why?"******

**Her head snapped back over to look up at him. "Are you kidding? I hurt you John! I...I made you ****_bleed!_****" ******

**"****Do you really think I would've let you...if it bothered me all that much?"******

**Her mouth dropped open and her head cocked to the side before a grin crept its way up one side. "You...are a sick and twisted individual."******

**He shrugged. "Maybe, but I'm ****_your_****sick and twisted individual."******

**"****Mmm, yes you are." She raised her arms to wrap them around his neck and pulled him down to her. "And don't you forget it."******

**"****Mmm...Why can't I keep my hands off you, Kat?"******

**"****Probably the same reason I can't keep my hands off of you John."******

**"****Well then, who are we to argue with that?" He asked, flashing that beautiful smile of his.******


	14. Chapter 14

A Man's World - Chapter 14

"Now, let me change the dressing on that wound. And next time you need to let me know if you're in pain!"

Kat gave him a little smile, knowing that there was _no _way that she was going to stop him next time or the time after that regardless of some slightly annoying pain.

"I mean it Kat, or I won't touch you again."

"Yes, John."

He just gave her a look and Kat tried to return it, in as innocent a manner as possible. She must have fooled him because he got up from the bed and came back with the supplies needed to change her bandage. Kat didn't want to give away the fact that her side still hurt quite a bit, so she lay there silently while he removed the old bandage and replaced it with a new one. Taking a deep breath after he was done, Kat motioned for John to come back to bed when he was done putting the supplies away. She lay on her uninjured side and snuggled up close to him. His hand began running slowly up and down her arm.

"You were talking in your sleep again last night." She said, quietly.

His hand stilled. He had a feeling he knew what about, but he asked anyway. "About what?"

"Your boss." She paused a moment before continuing. "Do you want to talk about it?"

John sighed deeply and then began to tell her about the situation that he and Harold were now in. "I owe the man my life. He found me at a tipping point in my life and helped to pull me back from that ledge. We'd been working together for several months helping people like you. Ok, maybe not EXACTLY like you." John smiled at her and gave her a quick kiss. "Several weeks ago, he was taken by a woman who was just posing as a person who needed our help, only we didn't know that at the time. She was actually trying to lure Harold out into the open so that she could make him tell her some information that she thought only he knew. Unfortunately, I found out too late and by that time, she'd taken him."

"So, will she kill him do you think?"

"Honestly I don't know. I never would have expected her to take a hit out on herself, but she did. I don't THINK that she will as long as she thinks he can tell her what she wants to know. But I'm not sure how long Harold can hold out if she gets more forceful with him."

"He's not a very strong person, then?"

"Oh no, that's not what I meant. Harold is a VERY strong person. He was injured a couple of years ago and had to go through extensive physical therapy and rehabilitation after he had to have several vertebrae fused in his neck. He did it all alone, went through all that pain, alone. Ever since that time, he's been looking for a way to help others who are in similar situations as he was."

"How did the two of you meet John? That seems a strange coincidence that he meets someone at just the right time who can help him with his work. Are you sure that you trust him?"

"With my life, I trust him. He's very... secretive... and very eccentric. It's taken me a long time to gain his trust and even so, there are things he hasn't told me about himself or his life. I.. I can't really go into more detail about him or the job we do together, Kat." He looked into her eyes and tried to convey his sincerity to her. "I hope you understand. It's not that I'm trying to hide something here. It's just not my secret to tell."

"Don't worry John, I... I don't know you as well as I wish I did, but I DO know that you wouldn't hold something back from me to hurt me. I don't believe you have that in you. You are a kind, compassionate person."

John looked at her with doubt written all over his face.

"No, really John. You could be killed doing what you do, am I right? " He just nodded. "And yet you do it anyway. Why? Because you want to help people. You care about what happens to them and you want to see justice done. That takes kindness AND compassion."

"I'm glad you can think of me that way Kat but if you knew me, REALLY knew me and the things I've done..."

"I very much doubt that it would change how I feel about you in the slightest. But if you feel comfortable enough, tell me about it and let me judge for myself."

John's face took on a pained look. "Kat... I... I can't. I know you'd leave right now and I couldn't..." He was unable to finish what he was saying. He didn't want her to know just yet how strongly he felt about her, that the thought of her leaving was like a knife twisting in his gut. So, instead he finished with, "I couldn't be sure you'd be safe then."

Kat sighed. She didn't think that was what he'd intended to say but decided to let it go for now. "Ok, but one of these days, when you ARE ready to talk about it, just remember I'm here." She reached out and ran her hand across his cheek and smiled. When he finally returned her smile, she continued. "So, this woman has your boss. Where have you tried looking?"

"Well I could find him just about anywhere in NYC that is within range of a camera."

"Wait, what? How is that possible?" Kat asked, propping herself up on her elbow and looking at John quizzically.

"Well, Harold is very good with computers and he wrote what you might call a facial recognition program that can be used with a feed he has for all the cameras in the City." John spoke slowly, trying to be careful of just what and how much information he told Kat about the Machine.

"But that's... there are MILLIONS of cameras all over the City!"

"Exactly!. That's why I just can't understand it! I SHOULD be able to find him!" He said agitatedly. "He's out there somewhere and he needs me and I . !"

"Calm down, John and let's think about this." Kat sat up and hugged her knees. " If you're able to search the City with the cameras and you haven't found him, then it stands to reason that he either is not IN the City or he's somewhere that has no cameras. By the way, this woman who took him, does _she_ know that you have this capability?"

"I believe so yes."

"So... hmm... well if she knows, then she probably wouldn't take him out of the City because you'd see her leaving with him correct?" At John's nod, she continued. "So that leaves someplace that has no cameras. Are you able to detect 'dead zones'? Places in the City that have no camera coverage?"

"Yes. It's taken me awhile to narrow down the places that are big enough and private enough for her to keep him captive. The past few weeks, I've been searching for him in those places and have come up empty. It's like they just vanished into thin air!"

Kat put her head down on her knees and closed her eyes. "Ok, give me a few to think this through." John threw the covers back and got up from the bed. He pulled on a pair of boxers, turned on a light and started to pace the room. He had no idea what Kat would be able to come up with that he hadn't already thought of, but it was a bit of a relief to at least share his dilemma with another person. He felt a faint stirring of hope but quickly squashed the feeling. He wasn't used to relying on other people.

"Have you tried any of the tunnels?" She finally asked.

"Tunnels? What tunnels? Like under the river you mean?"

"Sort of. Look, every time I want to build somewhere in the City, I have to find out what tunnels are below the area and then demonstrate that my construction will not impact those tunnels."

"But all of the subway tunnels are full of cameras. I would have seen Harold or Root in one of them. And where would they hide?"

"Not ALL the tunnels have cameras, John. There are several that were built in the early 1900's and were either abandoned or never completed at all. In the 50's there were several platform lengthening projects to accommodate larger trains and some stations had to be abandoned as a result."

"How do you find out where the abandoned ones are Kat?" John looked at her intensely and had to hold himself back from rushing to her and grabbing her in his eagerness. Could it be that he'd finally found where Root was hiding Harold?

"Well I go down to the DOB and look at the old plans for the 'ghost subway system' as we all call it, in the area where I want to build. They have all the specs for the tunnels and then I sit down with my team and we draw up a proposal based on those and our building plans."

"The DOB?"

"Department of Buildings."

"Can anyone go take a look at those plans?"

"No, you need to have a builder's permit to look at the plans. They don't want just anyone knowing where the tunnels are and going down there. Where was the last place that your boss and that woman were seen together?"

"Near an abandoned sewage treatment plant in Brooklyn."

"Brooklyn? Hm. Then they could be in or near the Nevins Street Station. There is a disused lower level. The upper level is used for the express but when the station was renovated, a temporary wall in the underpass was built. Later they replaced it with a tile wall so that while it _appears _ be a solid wall, there is access to the unused platform via a cellar-type door at the north end of the upper platform."

John couldn't resist any longer. He swiftly approached the bed and pulled her into a crushing embrace, covering her with kisses. His face was shining with elation now that he had a new place to search for Harold."Oh Kat! You are such a beautiful, smart, wonderful..."

"Omph! Stop John!"

"No really Kat, I can't tell you how..."

Gasping, Kat tried again. "No John, you're squeezing me too hard." She managed to get out.

Releasing her immediately, John apologized. "I'm so sorry sweetheart! It's just...you've given me new hope! I can't thank you enough for that! Are you ok? Did I hurt you badly?"

His face changed from jubilation to distress and she could have kicked herself for mentioning the pain and ending his happiness. "No, I'm fine. You were just a bit overly enthusiastic." She laughed, trying to distract him.

"I'm so sorry Kat! Why don't you just go back to sleep while I..."

"Don't even THINK of going anywhere without me John!" She quickly interrupted him.

"But Kat, you're..."

"I'm fine. I am NOT letting you go into this without someone to back you up. I thought we'd established that fact yesterday."

"Kat, this woman is very dangerous and you aren't at full strength by any means."

"All the more reason for me to go with you and I don't have to be at full strength to shoot a gun." She spoke, getting up from the bed and throwing on some clean clothes. "Now, I can come with you, or I can come after you, but either way, I WILL be going." Kat tried to be forceful in her statement hoping it would also help her forget the one major problem she was going to have in going down into the subway tunnels.

Sighing heavily, he said, "Do you promise to do everything I tell you?"

"Of course. I told you I'd listen to you in your area of expertise didn't I? Now, are you ready?" She wanted to get going quickly before she had a chance to change her mind. She could already feel the tremors starting and hoped that she could keep her voice from shaking. Nodding, John grabbed a set of flashlights from under the sink and handed her one.

"Ok. Just remember your promise."

*********************************

John thought the quickest and most direct way of getting to the Nevins Street station would be to take the subway itself rather than the car, however he DID call the car service that he and Harold used to have a car waiting on the street above just in case they did find Harold. After several weeks in Root's "care", John wasn't sure what condition Harold would be in.

At this late hour, he and Kat were the only people in the subway car. As she sat next to him, Kat rested her head on John's arm. Lifting up his arm, he draped it over Kat's shoulders and pulled her closer. Trying to forget about the ordeal she was about to undertake, Kat closed her eyes and the rocking of the subway car combined with John's warm body next to hers had her falling asleep in next to no time. At one point, a few teenage punks entered the car. One of them started leering at Kat. John's eyes narrowed and took on a dangerous gleam and his body tensed slightly. One of the kid's friends nudged him and seeing the look John was giving them, they all moved on. John slowly relaxed and for the rest of the ride, he watched over Kat as she slept.

Just before they reached the station, John reached down and caressed Kat's face, speaking softly and telling her it was time to wake up. Kat jerked awake and then hissed as the movement pulled her side.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to fall asleep." She said, rubbing her eyes, sitting up and looking around.

"Don't worry about it sweetheart. You SHOULD be home in bed right now anyway, not traipsing around like this. I really wish you'd take a car home and wait for me there."

Kat gave him a withering look. "I'm sorry, do I _look_ like the stay at home type to you?" Wisely, he didn't answer her.

"Next thing you know, you'll have me home, barefoot and pregnant!" Kat stopped, wondering where _that_ had come from. Her mental image of being pregnant with John's child had her wide-eyed. John didn't notice though because her words were having an even stranger effect on him. The thought of Kat bearing his child gave him an indescribably warm, happy feeling until the realization hit him that such a thing would be incredibly dangerous to both her and the child. At that point, the subway train came to a complete stop and the doors opened with a swish. Both of them stood up, grateful for the distraction.

"Ok, so you said that the entrance to the lower levels is through the north end?" John finally spoke, clearing his throat as they walked towards the end of the platform.

"Yes, that's what I was told. I think that's it there." She said softly and pointed to a metal trap door on the ground just before the platform's edge.

Kneeling down, John was excited to see that the metal latch on the door had been freshly scraped, exposing a bit of shining metal amongst the rest of the old, dull rusted color. A feeling of hope once more rose in his chest and this time, he didn't stop it. This entire scenario and location just felt _right_ to him. Root had to have Harold hidden from him somewhere and this seemed like the perfect place.

Lifting up the heavy trap door, he motioned for Kat to go down first. "This door is pretty heavy and I'm not sure you should put any more strain on your wound. I'll hold it while you climb down and then come down after you."

Kat looked down into that dark hole and her fear grew. She knew however that John NEEDED her, so she took a deep breath, switched on her light and started the climb down. As she stood at the bottom of the ladder waiting for John, she could feel herself shaking. As she swung her flashlight around, she heard several squeaks from all around her and she almost cried out. Only John's hand taking hers prevented her from doing so.

"Sweetheart, you're shaking like a leaf! Are you alright?"

"Yes, just cold." She lied. "Let's go. Which tunnel do you want to try down first?" She asked, trying to distract him.

"Most people are right-handed so they unconsciously tend to choose paths that go to that side." He answered. "Let's try that way first. I want you to stay behind me though and keep your flashlight directed at the floor in front of us. If you shine it up behind me, it will blind me and if we can't see where we are going then one of us might have a bad fall."

"Ok." She agreed and took her gun out of the jacket pocket she had kept it in. Moving slowly forward, John held his gun at eye-level in one hand and his flashlight directly under the gun with his other hand. Sweeping back and forth, he looked for any side openings from the main tunnel.

Kat kept her flashlight pointed downwards and silently prayed that she wouldn't see 'them'. Just the thought of those furry bodies with their long, sharp teeth... long, sharp teeth that were ready to bite anyone and anything and without any warning... She tried hard to control the shaking when she saw that the flashlight was bouncing as a result. She couldn't drown out the squeaking noises all around them though as they walked and she wanted nothing more than to turn and run in the other direction. She could feel the fear creeping into her muscles, making them work slowly and then almost completely stop. 'NO!' she shouted in her mind. 'I can do this! I have to do this! For John, I have to do this for John.' She kept repeating it over and over to herself.

Suddenly John let out a small cry and rushed forward. Leaning down he picked up something from the ground. Forcing herself to move, she slowly made her way towards where John was examining an object in his hand.

"Kat!" He exclaimed quietly but excitedly, not noticing her reluctant approach. "This is HIS! This is Harold's handkerchief from the breast pocket of his suit! Remember how I told you he's always wearing three-piece suits? Do you know what this means?" He caught her up intending to embrace her but noticed right away that something was off. "Kat? What's wrong? You're still shaking and you're hands are as cold as ice. And don't tell me again that you're cold, not down here!"

"It's nothing. This is great news John. Come, on let's keep moving."

"Kat..." he spoke warningly.

"Come, on John. Your friend is probably close by. Let's go get him."

Reluctantly he watched her walk ahead of him for a minute, watching to see if she was favoring her side and if it was the pain that was causing her reaction. However when he saw her pick her way carefully forward, he saw no sign that her side was bothering her so he quickly caught up to her. "Wait, I told you to stay behind me." He reminded her.

Grateful that he didn't push the issue, she conceded the lead. Once more pointing the flashlight down, she followed him for several minutes as they navigated the darkened tunnel. In several places there were large puddles of smelly, stagnant water. In one such place the water was so deep they couldn't even see any trace of the rails. John stopped, placed his gun in the waistband of his pants at the small of his back and before she knew what he was doing, he had her scooped up in his arms.

"John! What are you doing?" She gasped.

"Those sneakers of yours will be very uncomfortable once they're wet." He answered as he waded through the puddle, carrying her in his arms.

"John. I don't need you to do this! I can walk and what about you? You're getting all wet!"

"There is no sense in both of us getting wet feet. Hold your gun up in front of us please. And I know I don't HAVE to do this but I want to." When they reached the other side, John slowly slid Kat down his body. She welcomed the distraction that the contact afforded.

"Mmmm. I wish we were at home right now." She said quietly.

"So do I. The quicker we find Harold, the quicker we can get back there." He said, removing the gun from behind his back and giving her a swift kiss before he set off again down the tunnel.

As they moved further and further away from the station, the sides of the tunnel became more roughly hewn and unfinished. Listening to the darkness, Kat thought she heard more and more squeaking coming from up ahead. 'I'm in the subway with John, I'm in the subway with John, I am NOT at home in bed. I am NOT five.' Kat repeated to herself over and over. She was desperately trying not to remember the reason for her fear of rats, trying not to remember how it felt when one crawled into her bed in the dark when she was five. Trying not to remember how it had bitten her repeatedly until her screaming woke her Dad up and he killed it. She was trying not to remember the size of the needle the Drs. had used when giving her a rabies shot in the stomach. Suddenly her flashlight caught the light of several sets of red shining eyes up ahead. Kat couldn't help herself, she let out a little scream and stopped dead in her tracks.

Instantly John was at her side, alert and scanning all around for the danger that had had her gasping aloud. "What is it Kat? What did you see?" He demanded in a low, whispery voice.

"I... it was nothing. I'm so sorry John. I thought I saw something moving next to you. I... wait.. does it seem lighter to you up ahead?" They were both distracted from Kat's reactions when in shutting off their flashlights, it appeared that it was indeed lighter up ahead.

"Stay behind me and to the left Kat." John said crouching down and moving stealthily forward. Kat imitated his movements and held her gun in front of her at the ready. She forgot all about the rats in the rush of adrenaline that came with the idea that she and John were about to go into a dangerous situation together. There was no one else she could imagine doing this with or for than John.

As they approached closer, Kat could see that the light was coming from a series of small lights strung up to a beam and connected to a set of large batteries. The very next thing she noticed was a small disheveled man with glasses slumped into a chair he was bound to. A hiss from John drew her attention to him and he motioned for her to stay where she was but to also keep the gun up and ready.

Step by slow step, John snuck into the area where Root was holding Finch. There were no hidden areas and there was no sign of Root either but he was taking no chances. There was a small table next to Finch that had all manner of sharp objects on it and nearby, there was a pile of garbage that smelled terrible and was attracting several rats. John stopped just short of the pool of light and looked around. He wouldn't put it past Root to booby trap the area. He crouched at various heights looking for tripwires with his flashlight. While he was not loud, his movements were making small noises and John was concerned that Finch was not reacting to the sounds. As confident as he could be that there were no hidden tripwires, he hissed a bit louder trying to get Harold's attention. There was still no reaction from Harold and he became even more concerned. Swinging back to look for Kat's position, he moved into the light, making sure to stay out of her line of fire.

"Harold? Harold?" He spoke softly from next to his friend. If Harold was injured badly he didn't want him to jerk involuntarily and hurt himself more. Still, Harold didn't react so John spoke louder. "Harold! Harold! It's John. I've come for you. Can you hear me?"

Finally John saw a slight movement from Harold and he let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding. Root WOULD pay for what she'd done to Harold but it would have gone so much worse for her if she'd killed him. Harold's head bobbed a little and John leaned down and just barely caught Harold's words.

"John? Is...is.. that you?"

"Yes, Harold it's me. I've come to take you home." John leaned down and began slicing through the bonds holding Harold to the chair.

"If I'm not imagining..this...you should...go. She'll be..back soon." Harold licked his dehydrated lips and seemed unable to speak any further. Looking around for some water for Harold, John silently cursed himself for not thinking to bring any. A hiss from Kat's direction brought his attention back to high alert, but she just removed a bottle of water from her jacket and motioned towards Harold with it. Grateful beyond belief that she had thought to bring some when he hadn't, a small part of his brain registered the fact that it was one of the reasons that he cared about her so deeply, the fact that it was part of her character to think of others. He nodded to her and she tossed the bottle in his direction.

"Here Harold. Drink." He held the bottle up to his lips and watched as the older man took several large gulps. It was as if he was a man just coming out of the desert after having wandered there for days. John could feel the rage rising within him at the treatment that Harold had suffered. And that wasn't including the countless cuts and bruises he could see all over the man!

Speaking a bit more clearly, Harold spoke again. "John, you have to leave. Now. She's only gone to get more drugs. Go, don't let her get you too. You are the contingency. If she gets you, it'll all be over."

"I am NOT leaving you here like this Harold." John gently lay a hand on his shoulder. "I would never leave a friend behind. Now, let's get this duct tape off you..."

"She broke my leg John so I couldn't escape even when she was gone. I'll only slow you down."

John growled and his hands balled into fists when he thought of poor Harold in more pain and not able to walk even in the awkward limping way he normally did. "I am not leaving you Harold so stop. I'll get you out of here if it's the last..." A yell from Harold had him swinging his gun behind him and ready to fire instantly. "What is it Harold?"

"She's back! Over there! It's..."

Looking towards where Harold was, John saw that he had mistaken Kat for Root. "No Harold. It's ok. That's not her. It's my friend Kat. She's helping us."

"Kat? Kat who? You didn't tell her about the Machine did you?" Harold questioned, getting extremely agitated.

"Of course not. She's a number and …. well I'll explain later. We need to get you out of here." John was beginning to worry about his friend's mental state. Obviously things had not been easy for him for the several weeks that Root had him captive. Still, it was over now and John promised himself that he would do whatever it took to help Harold recover.

Cutting through the last of the bonds holding Harold to the chair, he said "Harold, I'm going to carry you out of here. We have your car waiting above ground and then you'll be home safe. I promise I won't let her take you again." He gently put his arms under Harold's legs and around his back, surprised at how frail he felt.

"Did she feed you at all Harold?" He asked while gesturing for Kat to proceed him. She nodded at him and slowly walked back the way they had come, gun at the ready. It wouldn't do to be caught now, just when John had gotten his boss back. Kat hadn't missed the look that the man had given her when he thought she was that woman Root. It astounded Kat that anyone could be that evil and hurtful to another person. Kat couldn't hear exactly what was said between John and his boss...Harold, she thought, but she could tell that Harold was urging John to do something and John seemed to be holding back his anger. Her estimation of the older man rose as she realized he was trying to get John to leave him there and get himself to safety. The fact that he was more concerned for John's safety than his own life, spoke volumes. Obviously the two men had a relationship based on friendship as well as one of employer/employee.

Kat dragged her attention back to watching ahead of them for danger. Unfortunately that brought her senses back to the problem she was having knowing that there were rats all around her in the dark. Rats she couldn't see but which could probably see her. She began breathing heavily but tried to focus on the fact that they were almost back to the station. If she could just hold on for a few more minutes, they'd be above ground and away from this dark, dank hell hole. Behind her, she heard John splashing through a puddle and she could see up ahead, the ladder leading to the upper platforms of the subway station. Just then, there were more squeaks to her right and she had to resist the urge to swing her gun that way and fire at the disgusting things. Not that she would have hit anything with the way her hands were shaking so much!

When they got to the ladder, John told them both that he was going to go up first and then grab Harold as he did his best to climb the ladder. Kat groaned, realizing that she would be the last one up the ladder but nodded to John when he asked her if she could help support Harold until he was ready to hop up the ladder on one leg. As he approached her with Harold, Kat tried to slow her breathing down so that he wouldn't realize there was anything amiss. The last thing she wanted was his attention taken away from what he needed to do to get them all out of there safely. John looped his boss's arm around her neck and set him gently down on his one good leg.

"Hi Harold." Kat said to him softly, not wanting to alarm him.

"Thank you Ms..."

"Greyson. Katherine Greyson but please call me Kat."

"Thank you, Ms. Greyson for helping John locate me. I'm glad to see he was at least careful enough to bring someone along to watch his back. John is not always the most cautious person I've known, a fact that has given me a cause for worry many times."

Kat laughed quietly. "John, sometimes impulsive? I never would have believed it. Actually, it was MY idea to come with him."

"Indeed? And yet we've never met. I find it curious that you'd put your own life in danger for a stranger Ms. Greyson."

Kat just shrugged. "Isn't that what you and John do everyday? It's one of the things I admire most about John, the thing that drew me to him in the first place."

Harold's eyebrows shot up but before he could question her on the implications of what she was saying, John called down from above.

"You two can get to know one another later. Try and hop up a few rungs Harold so I can grab you."

Kat could see Harold steel himself for the pain he'd be in as he tried to hop and climb up with a broken leg.

"Harold? Can I help you up a little? Sort of give you a little boost?" Kat asked him.

"Oh no, Ms. Greyson. I can manage. Thank you."

"Harold. I'm stronger than I look. Please... let me help you." Kat spoke up as she watched Harold struggle to get up onto the second rung of the ladder. It didn't help that the poor man looked like he'd been to hell and back.

John was leaning down from above but unless Harold was able to get to the third rung, John would be unable to grab him. "Let her help you Harold or we'll be here all night. She owns her own construction company and is a tough lady." Kat blushed at his words and was pleased that he saw her that way.

Having no choice, Harold nodded. Unable to touch his legs due to the broken one, Kat's only option in helping Harold up would be to push him up from below on his behind. Not wanting to embarrass either of them, Kat felt that it might be easier to push him up with her shoulder and back rather than her hands and leaned down to do so. Between her, John and Harold's own efforts, they were eventually able to get Harold up the ladder. While waiting at the bottom of the ladder, Kat had to once more try and control her breathing as she realized that she was now alone, in the dark, with red, shining sets of eyes from several nearby rats. The minute the way was clear, Kat shot up the ladder and up onto the lighted platform. John gave her a strange look, but was having a hard time trying to get Harold to the escalator up to the street. Harold insisted on limping while John wanted the small, bedraggled man to lean on him for support at the very least. Kat tried to distract herself from her fear by watching two very stubborn, proud men argue because each was trying to be solicitous of the other. Smiling, Kat walked up and inserted herself under Harold's shoulder, not giving either of them a chance to argue. In her line of work, Kat had learned early on how to deal with two arguing men when something needed to be done: Show them what to do by example and then they'd generally fall in line. This time was no different. As soon as she started moving with Harold, he began limping along with her and John followed behind them both. Kat let Harold set the pace at which they moved as as they reached the escalator, she could feel the older man's strength waning.

"Almost there Harold. What will be the first thing you'd like to eat when we get you home?" She asked, trying to distract him.

"Tea, actually Ms. Greyson. Right now, I'd kill for a cup of tea even the horrible instant kind."

Once they reached the street level, Kat and Harold took a bit of time navigating around the large piles of trash bags littering the curb. Tomorrow was trash day and in NYC that meant piles and piles of garbage bags all over the sidewalk and curbs. Finally, they reached the car that John had waiting. John appeared at her side and lifted Harold's by now almost limp body, off her shoulders and helped the man get into the car. Just as John was backing out of the car, Kat looked in the direction of a nearby pile of trash that was head height to her. She gasped and took a step back as she saw several rats on top of the pile right at her eye level. When she stepped back though, she felt something soft underneath her foot followed by a squeak and a sharp pain like a set of needles being jammed into her ankle. Looking down, she saw that she'd stepped on and been bitten by a rat.

Suddenly her vision wavered and she spoke quietly, "John?"

"Yes?" He looked up at her as he stepped back from the car.

"Catch me."


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: **

**Hi all, It's me, Maddsgirl75.**

**Sorry for the repost.**

**I wanted to let everyone know that I needed to change my pen name for personal reasons. **

**Any stories you were following before you'll need to refollow if you still like them :-)**

**Hopefully I'll get to update them soon :-)**

**Chapter 15**

Kat came to, cradled in John's arms in the back of the moving car.

"Welcome back." He smiled and pressed his lips to her forehead. "Care to tell me what that was all about?"

Kat attempted to sit up and move off his lap but he pulled her back gently.

"Wait...tell me, please?"

"I'm sorry," she said softly, settling in under his neck and resting her head on his chest. "It was the rats. I... I'm deathly afraid of them. It's all because of what happened when I was five." Kat told him about that one terrifying night where she was woken abruptly when a rat had bitten her repeatedly. "Ever since then, I've been afraid of them."

"Well, with good reason. Why didn't you tell me?" He asked, concern evident in his tone. "I never would have made you go down there with me if I had known. Is that why you screamed?"

"You didn't _make_ me go down there if you recall. I sort of _insisted."_ She shrugged. "I thought I could...you know...that I could do it for _you_. I thought I could deal with my fear because you needed me. And I would have been ok, actually, if it hadn't been for stepping on that rat that bit me." Kat shuddered at the thought, but John sat upright immediately.

"You were bitten? Where? Are you ok?" He started looking her over.

"I'm ok John. It bit me on the ankle above my shoe. And before you ask, I'm **always** careful to keep my tetanus shot up to date both because of that incident and because of my job."

He stroked the back of his fingers down her cheek and tilted his head to the side. "OK, but, I'd like to check it out when we get to the library, OK?" He lay back against the seat cushions and pulled her back into his enveloping embrace. "And I wish you would have told me about your fear. I would..."

"You would have what John?" She interrupted. "Left me at home? I don't think so, and would that have been safe anyway? You said yourself there are people out there trying to kill me. No, I belong with you, wherever you are."

Her words brought a thrill to his heart. He was hoping that she meant those words sincerely, that she belonged with him, **to** him. He was touched beyond all reason that she'd come with him simply because she thought he needed her and that she'd gone despite her fear. If only she knew how much he **did** need her! He leaned down and tenderly moved his lips against hers, trying to convey just how much he cared for her and needed her. Kat sighed and settled closer against his body, returning his kiss and running her hands softly through his hair and over the skin on the back of his neck. Neither seemed to want to break away from the other and the kiss went on and on for several minutes.

Finally, the driver up front cleared his throat and John realized that they had stopped moving. "Did you want help sir, taking Mr. Finch inside?

"No thank you, we can manage."

Kat reluctantly slid off his lap and opened the door. They had pulled up in front of an old, granite building in the Palladian style that was surrounded by scaffolding.

"Where did you say we are?" Kat asked John as he scooped up the sleeping form of Harold from the front seat.

"This is HQ, our headquarters of sorts." He said quietly so that the driver wouldn't overhear him.

"Oh! So I get to see the inside of the Batcave?" Kat laughed. "Shouldn't I be blindfolded or something?"

"Hmm, maybe later." He said, his eyes full of promise and mischief. "For now, I'd settle on having you unlock the door."

As they entered the building, Kat was immediately struck by the smell of old books. Looking around her, she saw shelf after shelf of books, most of them haphazardly placed on the shelves. The floor was littered with paper and torn books. At heart, Kat was a bibliophile and she gave a small moan, looking at the poor condition of all those lovely books.

"What's wrong Kat?" John asked, seeing her dismayed expression.

"All these books!" She said in a forlorn voice. "Look at the way that all these books have been destroyed and no one's done anything about it!"

John smiled at her concern over a bunch of old, moldy books. "It's necessary Kat, to maintain the illusion that this place is abandoned. Though frankly, knowing Harold, I have to wonder how he puts up with this either. He collects..."

"I collect rare books, Ms. Greyson." Harold interrupted, looking at her as John gingerly set him down at the top of the stairs. He'd obviously woken and overheard their conversation. "And all those books are carefully stored upstairs. These books are outdated encyclopedias, novels of the tawdry, romantic kind, and ones that were ruined at the time that I purchased the library. Still, I agree that it's a disgrace that someone would allow books to get so damaged."

As Harold tried to limp down the hall, Kat inserted herself under his arm for support and the two of them made their way slowly toward the end of the hall. John knew Harold maintained a bedroom in case he needed to remain in the library overnight. He shook his head and watched as Kat and Harold chatted like old friends about their favorite books. Leave it to Kat to charm her way into Harold's good graces right from the get-go.

'"In here." Harold steered Kat towards the bedroom. Once inside, Harold sank gratefully onto the mattress. "Are we sure we're safe here Mr. Reese? **She** hasn't found this location?"

"No one has been in here except me, Harold. Now, let me take a look at those injuries. Kat, could you go down the hall and to the left, there's a bathroom with medical supplies in the cabinet. Can you bring them here please?" Kat nodded and left.

Once he was sure Kat was out of earshot, John spoke. "Harold. I haven't told Kat any details about the Machine. I'll leave it up to you to decide what to tell her. But you need to know, even though she was originally just a number, she's come to mean a lot more to me. A **lot** more and I'm hoping she'll stick around once we've found out, and stopped, whoever is trying to kill her."

Harold winced as John touched a large cut on his face but looked him in the eye. "Nothing would give me more pleasure than to see you happy with someone. You deserve some peace and normalcy after what's gone on in your life and I hope that you can find it with Ms. Greyson. You have been asked to do some horrendous things and seen too much of the dark side of human nature. I know that you don't believe you are a good person but I see it and it's obvious that Ms. Greyson does as well. While I do have concerns about her safety should she 'stick around', I'm confident that you and I will do our best to keep her safe, yes?"

Frankly astounded by the level of openness and emotion Harold was displaying, John was touched by the older man's kind words. He found all he could do was swallow around the lump in his throat and nod. He finished checking Harold over and told him that while the combination of his injuries were painful, none were serious enough to require stitches. His leg though was another matter.

Kat walked in just as John was telling Harold that his leg was broken with a simple complete fracture. "I can set it for you here Harold or we can take you to a hospital."

"You already know the answer to that Mr. Reese. Go ahead and do it."

"Wait!" Kat exclaimed. "You're going to set his leg HERE? Why wouldn't you take him to the hospital?"

"Because Ms. Greyson, only the paranoid survive. At the hospital, there will be all sorts of paperwork and personal records involved..."

Kat pursed her lips but said nothing more. She thought it was a bit dangerous, all in the name of remaining anonymous.

"I need you to take some pain pills and when you're out, I'll reset the leg. It'll go much smoother if your muscles are relaxed." Harold agreed and took the pills that John offered.

"Why don't I stay and clean up these cuts for you Harold while John goes and makes you some tea?"

Harold winced. "Maybe you could down to the local coffee shop and buy some tea instead, Mr. Reese?"

"You don't think he can make it properly?"

"Have you ever eaten anything he's cooked Ms. Greyson?"

Kat blushed before replying. "Actually yes and it was... fantastic." She looked up at John as she said that and blushed further at the gleam in his eye. "But perhaps he SHOULD go get you some tea."

"Alright. I'll be back in just a few." John said reluctantly and headed downstairs. For the next several minutes, Kat spoke quietly to Harold as she cleaned the cuts on his hands and face. She explained how she and John had met and how John was convinced that someone was trying to kill her. In fact they had almost succeed the other night when they shot up her trailer at the job site and she'd been grazed in the bullet exchange.

"I'm so upset about that!"

"Yes, getting shot does tend to be annoying, Ms. Greyson." Harold gave her a small smile. "Good thing you weren't seriously hurt."

"No, I'm not mad about that, it's going to be hard for me to replace the darn trailer! And you'd think I'd been shot several times at least by the way that John carries on about it."

"Ms. Greyson, may I speak frankly?"

"Of course Harold. I value honesty in a person and please, call me Kat."

"Well Kat, I won't go into detail here, but John once lost someone he cared about because he failed to act quickly enough and let his job get in the way. He's never quite forgiven himself for that. I believe that is why he might be reacting the way he is, to you being injured. It's quite obvious to me that he cares about you quite a bit and doesn't want the same thing happening to you."

Kat colored a little at Harold's assessment of John's feelings for her. "Thank you for telling me that, Harold. I care about him quite a bit as well."

"I'm glad to hear that Ms. Greyson," Harold reverted once more to the formality of her last name, she noticed. "I'd hate to think that John would end up with feelings for a person who didn't return them to the same degree. He deserves better than the hand he's been dealt so far. In the meantime, I'll look into who's targeting you right away." Harold reassured her. "I know John is very good at what he does, but his computer expertise is a bit...limited."

When John returned with Harold's tea, they all sat and drank in peaceful silence until eventually, Harold fell asleep.

John looked over at Kat with a tenuous look. "I'm going to need your help with this."

"With what?"

"I need you to sit on Harold's thigh and keep the rest of his leg steady with your hands as I pull the bone back into place. Can you do that?"

"But... I'm afraid of hurting him worse though."

"You won't. All you have to do is hold him immobile."

"OK, I trust you to know what's best." Kat crawled onto the bed and sat on Harold's thigh. She reached down, wrapping her hands around his leg, just above the knee. John grabbed on to Harold's ankle with both hands and quickly pulled the leg which snapped the bone back in place. When Harold's body spasmed underneath her as John moved the leg, she felt tears gathering in her eyes and they began to fall as Harold moaned.

"You can get up now Kat."

As soon as she was standing on her own, he gathered her in his arms and wiped away the tears. "He'll be alright. Once he wakes up, I'll go and get an air cast to immobilize the leg while it heals and perhaps a wheelchair and... " He chuckled to himself.. "a cushion." At Kat's puzzled look, he just shook his head. "Never mind." He chuckled again before turning serious. "Now, I want to check out that bite and your gunshot wound."

"My gunshot _graze,_ you mean, and I'm fine." She shook her head as he took her hand and led her out of the room and into some nearby book stacks.

"Uh huh. Like you were fine earlier... when we were..."

"Oh for the love of...! John, I'm fine." She was getting exasperated until she remembered what Harold had told her. She took a deep breath and smiled up at him. "See... I'm ok." She slipped off her shirt so that he could see that there was no blood on the bandage.

John's hands skated across her stomach and came to rest on her side, sending shivers throughout her body. After all that they had been through tonight, Kat felt that her nerves were raw and her body seemed extra sensitive to his touch. He lifted up the bandage, replacing it when he saw that there was no active bleeding. Once he was sure her side was ok, he told her he wanted to see her rat bite. Kat sighed to herself and started removing her shoe and sock.

"Let me." John said softly before kissing her lips and then kneeling down to untie her shoe. Once he had her foot exposed, he tried to raise the pant leg on her jeans to look at her ankle and calf but found it was too snug around the ankle for him to push it up far enough. "No, this isn't going to work, I'll need to remove your jeans."

"John!" Kat said, shocked at his suggestion and the fact that she'd then be stripped down to her lingerie, here, where he worked and where Harold could... ok, maybe Harold couldn't, but still! "John, I'm fine. Really."

"Let me be the judge of that. Kat, please. I just need to see that you're alright."

Again, thinking back to what Harold had told her, Kat gave in and started removing her jeans.

"I'd like to do that." John whispered as a familiar gleam appeared in his eyes. A smirk then appeared on his lips as he peeled her jeans slowly over her hips and down her legs. Seeing that smile, Kat felt the butterflies in her stomach come to life as his soft hands slid down her legs starting a deep ache even lower.

John must have felt something, some small shiver or tremor because his smile increased and he began kissing his way down her leg as he exposed her skin. Kat sucked in her breath as she felt his soft lips nibbling and kissing her legs. Finally he had her legs exposed. He picked up her ankle and leg that had been bitten. Very gently, he touched the area and saw that, indeed, there wasn't much blood.

He set her leg back down and stood up. "I'll be right back." He told her. True to his word, he was back in an instant with an antiseptic and some antibiotic ointment. He applied both and then kissed her leg just above the bite.

"What am I going to do with you Kat? You're always making light of your injuries and causing me endless worry."

"Um... learn to live with it?" She gasped out as his lips and tongue began to work their way back up her legs.

"No, I don't think so. Don't you remember...if you're injured..."

By this time, his mouth was on her upper thigh and she sucked in her breath as his teeth grazed across her bare skin towards her sex. "Hmm?" She responded as best she could with the sensation that her entire lower half was on fire.

She felt his fingers reach up and grab the waistband of her panties and pull them down her legs. As soon as they were completely off, John reached up and placed one of her thighs over his shoulder, so that her leg dangled down his back and she was now exposed to his mouth.  
John lost no time in burying his mouth between her thighs. He used his tongue to part her folds and licked up from her heated sex all the way to her clit. Kat moaned in response as John repeated the action again and again.

When she felt his teeth graze against her hard and swollen clit, she called out his name and reached up to grip the shelves above her head.

John shifted and pushed her leg further away, exposing even more of her to his talented tongue. As he continued to lick her in long, firm strokes, he would occasionally nip her clit, causing her to moan or gasp out his name. The more he nipped her, the more she began to writhe as his tongue danced over and around her clit. She threw her head back and had a death grip on the shelves as he unexpectedly thrust two fingers up inside her.

"Oh! John! I... have to... I need... to...please!" She panted out between the moans as he withdrew his fingers and thrust in again in time with what his tongue was doing to her clit. He just gave a little shake of the head and continued to tease and torture her with his tongue and those incredibly talented fingers of his. In seconds, she was a moaning, writhing mess and she wasn't sure how much longer her leg could hold her up.

Just when she was sure she couldn't take any more of what he was doing to her, he sucked her clit into his mouth and rolled it slightly between his teeth and tongue. Kat let out a strangled cry and began to shudder around his fingers and mouth. Quickly standing up and pulling his pants down, John freed himself from his boxer briefs and lifted Kat up, almost immediately bringing her back down on his hard, throbbing cock.

"John!" She almost screamed out his name as she felt herself suddenly full to bursting. He began to thrust up into her wildly, her arms coming to rest over his shoulders as he pounded into her.

"Oh! Kat! Yes..."

"Please John, don't stop...ever...I need this...I need you!" She gasped out and before either one of them knew it, they were calling out to each other as the tremors took over their bodies.

Kat's arms increased their hold on John's neck and shoulders holding on as if her life depended on it. Strangely enough, she felt in a way that it did. In the short time she'd known him, John had become more dear to her than she would have imagined possible. Not too long ago, she'd been expecting long, lonely nights filled with nothing more than the drivel on TV and the drivel in her microwave. Now, she was able to envision her nights filled with love and companionship. She couldn't even imagine going back to the way things used to be. She didn't want to go sleep-walking through her life anymore. Hugging John closer, Kat inhaled the scent of him and sighed in contentment.

"John, I've… I've never felt this good, this close to someone in my entire life. Thank you for bringing this light into my life."

John leaned back and looked at her though he didn't release his hold on her. "Oh Kat, if you only knew what I am, what I've done…. YOU are the one bringing the light into _my_ life. I'll only bring you darkness."

Suddenly he felt guilty. Guilty for all the pain and suffering he would bring into her life, for the lies he would be forced to tell…she deserved someone better. But God help him, he didn't think he could bring himself to give her up, unless…. Maybe if he told her about his former life, maybe then she'd be smart enough to walk away and maybe then he'd be strong enough to let her.

Kat was not privy to what was going on his mind, but she could see John slowly pulling back from her and she castigated herself for telling him how she felt so soon. Thank goodness she hadn't told him the entire truth… that she loved him beyond measure. She quickly ran over her options in her mind and decided that now would not be the time to show him what he meant to her. Once he opened up to her and she could show him that his demons no longer had power over him OR her, _then_ she could do something about her feelings for him. Until then, she'd wait.

"John, I totally disagree with you, but I'm willing to wait and show you that I'm right and you're wrong." She took a deep breath and disengaged herself from his body. "For now, let's check on Harold and then see if there isn't someplace we can lie down….together."

Nodding as if he agreed with her when all he wanted to do was lose himself in her and forget the rest of the world existed, he leaned down and put his pants back on. Kat also got herself dressed and together. They walked over to Harold's room where they found him still sleeping. John took her hand and led Kat to a room down the hall where there was a large bed and wardrobe. In the next room there was an attached bathroom.

"Is this your home away from home?" Kat asked, noticing the suits all neatly arranged in the wardrobe and the bed made with precise military corners.

"Yes, I seldom stay here, but Harold likes to be prepared. Especially since the time I was shot and he had to help me out a bit while I healed. Come, it's been a long night or should I say a long morning and you still need your sleep if you're going to heal yourself." He removed his pants and shirt and crawled into bed and Kat did the same. As soon as she was in bed, John reached over and pulled her up against his body and settled her within his arms. Kat murmured in contentment and it wasn't long before she was fast asleep.

John on the other hand found his mind in turmoil. He wanted the woman sleeping in his arms like he'd wanted no other since Jessica. He was drawn to her like a man in the desert is drawn to water. His body and heart needed her like he needed air to breathe. It was his mind though that wouldn't allow him any peace. It was screaming at him to let her go once this was over. That every minute he was with her, he was a danger to her.

Harold's words about being 'patient zero' took on a more personal meaning for him. Harold had been able to give up Grace just to keep her safe, so why couldn't he even contemplate such a thing when it came to Kat. Was he really that selfish? The thought bothered him immensely and he mulled over the implications of that for several minutes. It was a Damoclean sword that brought fear with either decision. Either way he was bound to make a wrong choice.

He could stay with Kat and have her in danger every minute of every day or he could end it with her and go back to the automaton he'd been before, not to mention hurting Kat in the process of rejecting her. He knew it would have been easier if he'd never gotten involved with her, but he couldn't bring himself to regret it because she had brought to life a part of him that he'd thought long dead and buried. He also was reluctant to end things himself as a result of what had happened with Jessica. He realized now that making a choice _for _her had been wrong, but he also couldn't picture Kat ending up with someone like Peter.

The incredible rage he normally felt when he thought of that piece of garbage was tempered now and it was all thanks to Kat. She made him want to be a better person. So while he couldn't picture Kat with an abuser, neither did he want to picture her with anyone else besides himself.

Mulling things over and over in his mind, John finally decided that there was only one thing he could do, something he'd never done before... tell her everything. Tell her about Jessica, about the CIA and the horrendous things he'd done, and would probably have to do again, about the danger that stalked him at every turn, and about his past failures in keeping those he cared about safe. Then let _her_ make the choice. The idea filled him with trepidation. Would he be able to take her likely rejection? Considering the only other options would be to lie to her every day or hurt her by breaking it off, he felt that the pain of her rejection would be worth it if it meant he didn't have to cause her pain, something that would surely result from the other two options.

Sighing and holding her tighter, John lay in bed for the next several hours enjoying the feel of her sleeping next to him, realizing it might be the last time, as he contemplated how he would tell her all the things she needed to hear before making her own decision.

The sound of someone yelling woke Kat up out of a sound sleep. Bolting up in bed, she realized that the space next to her was empty and she felt a small sense of panic at John's absence. For a brief second, she thought perhaps he had decided that they were getting too involved and had left, but in the next breath, she realized how ridiculous that would be considering he'd left her here at his HQ when he'd obviously have to return at some point. Throwing on her clothes, she left to investigate the yelling she could hear from the direction of Harold's room. Just as she was leaving, a note taped to the door caught her eye.

_Left to get an X-ray machine and air cast._

_Will be back soon. Please don't go anywhere.  
Miss you already. _

_John_

Kat smiled at the last line and hurried out the door, not even thinking about it when she opened the door to Harold's room, since that's where the yelling was coming from. She could see Harold thrashing around on the bed and yelling 'leave me alone!'. She quickly realized that he was having a nightmare about his ordeal but when she approached his bed to wake him, his eyes popped open and he yelled even louder. "Get away from me! I won't tell you anything!"

Realizing that he had mistaken her for the woman who'd kidnapped him, Kat quickly started talking soothingly to him. "Harold, it's me, Kat. John's friend. It's ok. You were just having a nightmare. Please don't move around so much until John gets back and puts the cast on your leg." She tried to reassure him without moving any closer.

Gradually, the wildness left Harold's eyes and he took several deep, calming breaths. "I apologize, Ms. Greyson, for disturbing you. I can assure you it won't happen again." He spoke with more of his cool reserve.

"What's to apologize for Harold? You've just been through a hell of a lot. In fact, if you wanted to talk about it, it might be easier to talk to a stranger than someone you're close to, like John?"

Harold looked thoughtful and opened his mouth to say, "Well, actually Ms. Greyson, you might be..." But whatever he was going to say was interrupted by the appearance of John wheeling a large machine into Harold's room.

"I picked up an X-ray machine Harold so we could check on your leg before I immobilize it."

"Do I dare to ask where you picked up something like that from?" Harold was raising his eyebrows at John and it was all that Kat could do to keep from laughing.

"I acquired this _legally_ Harold. Dr. Tillman can be quite resourceful." John was also grinning, glad to have Harold back in the library where he belonged and poking fun at him whenever he could. He'd missed his friend and the concern for his well-being had been like a weight dragging him down at every turn. Now that the weight was lifted, John almost felt giddy, until he looked at Kat smiling at the two of them. He suddenly remembered his resolve from last night and immediately, the weight returned to him. Moving over to Harold's bedside, John removed the instructions Dr. Tillman had given him on how to operate the machine and began to set it up. "Don't worry Harold, I promise not to make your toes fall off with this thing." He said cheerfully.

"I'm not worried about that eventuality Mr. Reese as it's not possible for X-rays to make ANY body part fall off. I would however, appreciate it if you'd be quick about this so that I can get out to my computers and see what type of damage has been done in my absence."

John just smirked and continued working over Harold, occasionally asking Kat to lend an extra hand. Within an hour, John had verified that Harold's bones were properly set and had put an air-cast on Harold's broken leg.

"And, one more thing I picked up for you Harold..." John stepped outside Harold's room and returned with a wheelchair. "Now, it's _your _turn to be wheeled around in this thing. Oh, and I got you a welcome home present." He said presenting Harold with a large box. Kat gave John a puzzled look as she saw him trying to hide a smirk but he just shook his head at her.

"Mr. Reese, you needn't have gone to the trouble," Harold started to say, but stopped when he pulled out a donut cushion from the box. Harold's face had a very serious look to it, but upon pulling the cushion out of the box, he broke into a wide grin and John chuckled a bit at his expression. "Touche, John."

Still chuckling, John helped Harold into the wheelchair and then wheeled him out to a bank of computer screens that Kat had noticed last night. Starting the systems up, Harold said in a dismissive tone, "Feel free to get out and about today Mr. Reese. I'll let you know when I have something on our mutual friend."

"Actually, Kat and I are going to go to the park today after freshening up. We'll bring something for lunch after that."

"Of course." Harold literally waved them away, staring intently at the screens as they came on-line.

Taking Kat's hand, John led them back to his room and into the bathroom. "I have something I wanted to tell you Kat but, I thought we could take a shower first."

"I do believe that is wonderful idea, John." Kat smiled at him and began removing her clothes.


End file.
